1.05 Tennessee Taz Devils - RB Montee Ball

In the real world: Yes, he's a Wisconsin running back and recent Badger RBs (Ron "Double Wide" Dayne, P.J. Hill, John Clay) didn't accomplish much once they got to the NFL. Nevertheless, Charles Campbell of WalterFootball.com would argue that Ball is not necessarily another "product of the system": "Wisconsin jumped out to a big lead with Ball leading the way (in an October 22, 2011 game vs. Michigan State). When he got dinged up and went out of the game, the Spartans made a big comeback. Ball returned partway into the second half, and the Badgers' offense came alive... When he was out, the Wisconsin offense was flat, and the 'system' did not keep producing without its leading back." In 2010, the 5'10", 217-lb. Ball scored 18 TDs despite being third on the team in rushing (behind John Clay and James White). The Broncos selected him in Round 2, which suggests that they view Ronnie Hillman as a change-of-pace back, not an every-down back; they may cut Willis McGahee or Knowshon Moreno as well. The main concern with Ball, as with Le'Veon Bell, is his heavy pre-NFL workload; in addition to having had 924 carries in college, he rushed over over 8,000 yards in high school.

In the TUFF world: Tennessee already addressed a very shaky QB situation in an April blockbuster trade, sending WR A.J. Green and its 2014 #1 pick to Green Bay for QB Aaron Rodgers and a 2014 second-rounder. In an ideal world, the 1.05 pick would have been a great position to take a wideout to replace Green. Thing is, their RB corps needed help, too. They have David Wilson (their #1 pick last year), but their other RBs are in part-time or backup gigs. Besides, at the time they made the pick, Tennessee still had the 2.04 and 2.05 picks that they could use on wideouts. Anyway, Ball's job situation with a suddenly potent Denver offense could help Tennessee go from an also-ran to a contender... provided that Ball can prove that he has tons of tread left on his tires and that he's not a product of Wisconsin's offensive line.