Seahawks RB Zach Charbonnet Displaying 'True Pro Feel' in Practice
RENTON, Wash. - When the calendar flips to May and NFL teams such as the Seattle Seahawks hit the practice field for the final phase of their offseason program breaking in rookies, some position groups can be trickier to evaluate than others.
In the case of running backs, with contact prohibited throughout the spring, coaches won't get to see players run behind their pads, limiting what can be assessed this time of year. But at the same time, while rookie Zach Charbonnet will have to wait a bit before he can use his 214 pound frame to try and run through tacklers, he already has made an excellent first impression on other fronts during the first week of Seattle's organized team activities.
Speaking with reporters after the conclusion of Thursday's third session, Seahawks offensive coordinator Shane Waldron said Charbonnet's pro readiness has jumped out quickly along with his pure athletic tools, size, and hands out of the backfield.
“Zach is another guy, similar to [center] Olu [Oluwatimi], where he has stepped into the building and you get that true pro feel from the guy right away," Waldron remarked. "He’s really serious about his business and then you notice his size and speed at running back. I know that you can’t tell a whole lot about what’s going to happen when the pads go on when we are out here right now, but you do get the feel where he is playing at a high tempo. He’s a big back, he has a toughness about him, and he’s really gathering all of the information and is picking up the offense quickly.”
Considering the praise recently bestowed upon him from UCLA coach Chip Kelly, who previously coached in the NFL with the Eagles and 49ers, Charbonnet's work ethic and business-like demeanor shouldn't come as a surprise.
According to Kelly in an interview with Seattle Sports 710, though Charbonnet didn't play any special teams for the Bruins in games because of his starting role at running back, he took his reps in the third phase of the game as serious as his offensive duties on the practice field. Understanding he may have to cover kicks and punts or serve as a protector on punt team at the next level, he "practiced his tail off" to prepare himself for such a role in the league.
“He’s probably one of the best practice players I’ve ever been around," Kelly said of Charbonnet. "He may have been our best special teams practice player and he never took a snap on special teams. But every day his approach to special teams practice was amazing. It’s just the type of kid he is."
Out of the gate, with Ken Walker III returning after an outstanding rookie season with over 1,000 rushing yards and nine touchdowns, Charbonnet may have to pitch in on special teams for the Seahawks. But the team didn't invest a second-round pick in him last month primarily to cover kicks or make tackles on punt team and after being one of the nation's most productive runners the past two seasons, he will immediately vie for snaps as a complementary backfield weapon.
After transferring from Michigan following his sophomore season, Charbonnet returned to the west coast and thrived with the Bruins, rushing for nearly 2,500 yards in two seasons as the program's bell cow in the backfield. With a nose for the end zone, he scored a whopping 27 touchdowns on the ground while averaging more than six yards per carry, including ranking third in the country among qualified running backs averaging seven yards per carry last season.
Diving deeper in his production, per Pro Football Focus, Charbonnet finished with 806 yards after contact, the sixth-most in the FBS division. He also forced 53 missed tackles while only fumbling the football once, running with power while also exhibiting excellent ball security.
As pointed out by Waldron, Charbonnet's ability to run through the face mask of defenders obviously stood out at UCLA, but his underrated burst as a bigger back played a key role in his impressive numbers roasting Pac-12 defenses on the ground. Seeing that athleticism on the practice field, it's easy to see why he ran as effectively as he did the past two seasons and why Seattle opted to invest a high draft pick in him.
“Seeing him in person, he feels big and fast, so he’s a good guy to have on our team," Waldron said. "He was able to average such a high yards per carry at UCLA, so I know he’s able to run some guys over, but it wasn’t like he was running someone over every snap. A lot of it was from some of the speed and burst that he was able to show on college tape that will translate here, and we will see where it progresses from OTAs to minicamp.”
Bringing a hard-nosed, downhill running style that should contrast Walker's explosive tendencies and jitterbug quickness quite nicely, Charbonnet's greatest strengths as a runner won't get to be seen on full display until August. There's not much he can do at the moment to help himself stand apart from a physicality standpoint.
What could help Charbonnet earn a big role on offense alongside Walker that can be showcased right now, however, is his reliable set of hands as a receiver. Despite barely being used in that capacity as Michigan, he became a viable weapon for quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson in the passing game in two seasons at UCLA, including catching a personal-best 37 passes for 321 yards as a senior.
With running backs catching the football becoming a bigger part of Seattle's offense in recent years, Waldron will be keeping a close eye on Charbonnet among his running back peers to see how he performs in the passing game over the next few weeks. If his reliability from the college level translates to go with his work ethic and football smarts, the door will be opened for the pro-ready back to not only push Walker for early down snaps, but also significant opportunities in a third-down role as a rookie.
"I think this is a great time of the year for all of the running backs to continue to develop a wide variety of skills when you don’t have the pads on. We are not going live in the run game so to speak, so the more that you can do and the more that you can develop a wide range of skills for those guys, I think will be beneficial.”
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