Georgia running back Nick Chubb answers questions from the media at the 2018 NFL combine on Thursday, March 1, in Indianapolis. Video by Dave Birkett/DFP
INDIANAPOLIS — Mark Walton’s trying year is over.
And while things aren’t about to get easier — that doesn’t happen after unexpectedly losing a parent — the former Miami running back has plenty to look forward to at the NFL combine this week and with the draft less than two months away.
Walton is one of the more intriguing prospects in what Lions general manager Bob Quinn called “a deep class” at running back.
He’s a potential Day 2 pick, and someone whose diverse skills would fit in a Lions backfield that emphasizes versatility.
More on the Lions:
Ameer Abdullah, Theo Riddick, Tion Green and Dwayne Washington are under contract for 2018, and the team would like to bring back restricted free agent Zach Zenner, but Quinn has said several times this offseason that he plans to add to the position with the most likely scenario being through the draft.
“It’s a good-looking crew,” Quinn said Wednesday at the combine. “It’s guys that have different skill sets. Guys that can carry the ball, guys that can catch. One underrated aspect of this running back class, as I go through it, is pass protection. It’s something that a lot of these guys are skilled at. With the passing games in college, which is really the key to most offenses, they have more experience in pass protection. So it’s a little bit easier to get the evaluation done. You’re not searching for those snaps quite as much as you might have been five or seven years ago.”
Walton checks off most boxes from a skill standpoint.
He’s a tad undersized at 5-feet-10 and 202 pounds, but he’s a good receiver and capable pass protector who was Miami’s team MVP as a sophomore and got off to a good start last year before October ankle surgery ended his season.
Walton said Thursday that his ankle is “feeling great” and he could have played in Miami’s bowl game, but decided to sit out because he was declaring for the draft.
“Coming off the injury, that was a depressing moment for me,” Walton said. “I had never been injured before, been away from my team that long. I was the leader of that team. It hurt me the most. But it's part of the game. It's what we sign up for as football players.”
Walton’s trying year began long before his injury.
On March 2 of last year, Walton’s mother, Kimberly Rogers, died days after suffering a stroke and about a month after his daughter, Ma’Lani, was born prematurely.
Walton, whose father was murdered when he was a child, immediately became the head of a household that also includes his 15-year-old sister.
He said his sister will move with him to wherever he begins his NFL career.
