Jeremiyah Love Scouting Report

Jeremiyah Love is an electric back who uses speed and acceleration to capitalize on small creases and convert them into explosive plays on the ground.

Draft Grade: Round 2 - Winning Starter

Strengths:

Explosive: When given a crease, Love can reach top speed quickly, allowing him to pick up chunks of yards.

Versatile: Love can align in the backfield but also be put into the slot to run routes. Love can also be put into motion and receive jet sweep handoffs.

Contact Balance: Love does a good job of absorbing initial contact from defenders while remaining on his feet and continuing to pick up yards. He runs with good balance and the ability to keep his feet pumping through contact.

Pass Catching: Love has shown to be a good receiving option both lined up at the traditional running back position but also as a receiver. Love is a natural hands-catcher. 

Concerns:

Overall Size: Love has a lean frame. When it comes to being a three-down back every week in the NFL, some teams may feel that is too heavy a workload and opt to have another back as part of a rotation.

Pass Protection: Love’s pass protection needs to improve both from a willingness and a technique standpoint.

Jeremiyah Love Summary/Projection:

Jeremiyah Love burst onto the scene during the 2024 season, becoming a key factor in Notre Dame’s offense as they made a run to the National Championship game. Love has proven at the collegiate level that he can be the focal point of an offense and do the rare thing in today’s game—carry an offense from the running back position. He is an electric back who capitalizes on defenses giving him even the smallest crease, turning those into explosive runs and picking up large chunks of yardage.

On film, Love appears to have an efficient process as a runner. From the handoff, he scans the line of scrimmage looking for a crease in the defense. Love is at his best in zone and outside zone runs, where he can stretch the defense horizontally and create openings. Once he finds that opening, Love is a one-cut back who gets vertical and attacks the defense. He has electric speed and strong acceleration, allowing him to turn a single crease or opportunity into a big play. At the second and third levels, Love most often chooses to outrun defenders, and he’s effective at it due to his speed. He also shows a willingness to finish runs, lowering his pad level and attempting to run through defenders in short-yardage situations or when trying to cap off a tone-setting play with physicality.

Another standout trait of Love's game is the impact he brings in the passing game. He has shown the ability to line up in various receiver alignments and is effective at running routes. When targeted, Love is a natural hands catcher and is a great candidate to get the ball quickly and create yardage after the catch. His versatility sets the stage for offensive coordinators to use him in jet sweeps, orbit motions, and other ways that put defenses in difficult situations.

The biggest area of improvement for Love is his pass protection. He needs to refine his overall technique to become more effective at protecting the quarterback. Love’s struggles in pass protection may create a dilemma for coaches when deciding how much to keep him on the field during obvious passing downs. While he’s a strong receiving back, his current limitations in protection could serve as a drawback.