Ezekiel Elliott

Elliott was able to generate monster stats during the 2015 season despite being the focus of nearly every opponent due to the struggles of the Buckeyes' passing game. He caused a bit of a ripple following a loss to Michigan in November when he questioned the playcalling and told the media it was his last game in the Big House. Still, most believe that will have minimal impact on his draft status. "Did you see him in tears before the game? That's passion. I wish all of the players on our team had his passion and character," an NFL scout told NFLDraftScout.com's Dane Brugler. "The talking heads who say he's going to fall in the draft are simply living in the moment ... just like Elliott did. The next talented player who falls in the draft because of a 'too honest' moment after a game will be the first." Elliott can expect to be grilled about the comments during pre-draft interviews, but he will still likely emerge as a strong candidate to be the first running back drafted. Within the Ohio State program, he is known as the ultimate team guy, something that is obvious on the field and with the way his coaches and teammates respect him off the field. "Look, it was unacceptable," another scout told Brugler about the comments. "Those who watched that game know he was right. But you just can't say what he did and call out the coaches. He had an immature moment and I know our coaches will have something to say about it. But this is a player who doesn't have a track record of maturity issues or character problems. He comes from a supportive family. He hands the ball to the official after each score. "I bet he'll learn from this, apologize and be a better teammate because of it. And as long as he shows that moving forward, it'll just be a small bump in the road that won't slow him down. He's better than the Wisconsin kid (Melvin Gordon) last year. We'll gladly take him." Elliott gained legendary status in the state of Ohio with his performance down the stretch in 2014, recording back-to-back-to-back 200-yard rushing performances in the Big Ten Championship Game vs. Wisconsin (220 yards), Sugar Bowl vs. Alabama (230) and National Championship game vs. Oregon (246). He earned offensive MVP honors in the final two games and finished the 2014 season with 1,878 rushing yards, the second-most in school history, adding 18 touchdowns.