NFL Draft Profile: Camerun Peoples, Running Back, Appalachian State Mountaineers
#6
Pos: RB
Ht: 6010
Wt: 217
Hand: 0968
Arm: 3258
Wing: 7878
40: 4.61
DOB:9/14/1999
Hometown: Lineville, AL
High School: Clay Central
Eligibility: 2023
Camerun Peoples
Appalachian State Mountaineers
One Liner:
Peoples is a physical player with impressive footwork and vision, but he lacks the agility, speed, and passing down skills NFL teams covet in modern running backs.
Evaluation:
Peoples looked quicker and more explosive in 2020 than in 2021, which hints that losing weight and playing closer to 215 lbs. could improve his draft projection. Peoples is a physical running back who has no trouble moving piles or lowering his shoulder to crush defenders in the hole. His burst surprises some defensive backs who quickly find themselves trailing Peoples. The redshirt junior has the strength to play through arm tackles, and his stiff arm is highly effective. For a player his size, Peoples executes subtle and quick open-field cuts surprisingly well. He displays good vision and footwork, which are foundational parts of his game. However, Peoples offers very little as a true third down back. Even dating back to high school, he wasn’t involved in the passing game. While he shows effort in pass protection, Peoples takes ineffective angles to defenders, and his awareness and recognition as a blocker are rudimentary at best. He’s not a sudden or twitchy player and lacks the agility to move east-to-west quickly. Peoples naturally runs high, which leaves him vulnerable to being chopped down at the legs. He lacks the speed to consistently bounce the play outside. Peoples projects as a late Day 3 pick whose profile fits a limited role in the NFL.
Grade:
7th Round
Background:
Peoples was a two-star recruit from Clay Central High School in Clay County, Ala., in the class of 2018. He was an unranked two-star recruit for Rivals and a three-star recruit for On3.com. Peoples didn’t receive a ranking on the 247Sports composite board, but he was a two-star recruit for the outlet, ranking 229th among running backs in his class (one spot below former BYU back Tyler Allgeier). Peoples didn’t receive a ranking or grade from ESPN. As a high school senior, he produced 2,082 all-purpose yards, including 230 carries for 1,672 yards and 21 touchdowns. Peoples also scored on kick and punt returns. He missed all but one game in the 2019 season with a torn ACL before earning 2020 Second-Team All-Sun Belt and 2021 Second-Team All-Sun Belt honors. Peoples set or tied the all-time NCAA bowl records for rushing yards (319) and rushing touchdowns (five) during the 2020 Myrtle Beach Bowl against North Texas. He was named the game’s MVP. Peoples is on preseason watch lists for the Doak Walker Award and the East-West Shrine Bowl. He was born on Sept. 14, 1999.
