Scouted by: Jason Feiner
College: LSU
Height: 5' 11"
Weight: 218 lbs
40-Time: 4.49
Bench Press: 15
Athleticism
Q.A.B. 8.50 Guice has great quickness and agility. He runs with a low base, and can easily run through arm tackles. He has quick feet and can avoid tacklers in the open field. He has excellent balance with the ability to stay on his feet and gain extra yardage after first contact.
Flexibility 9.00 He has natural flexibility and consistently lowers his shoulders to deliver violent blows to would be tacklers. He has great pad level when running.
C.O.D. 8.00 Guice has the agility and the balance to make quick clean cuts to avoid contact in the hole; however, Guice loves contact and often initiates it in the open field.
Explosion 9.00 Guice is extremely explosive. He is a violent runner that loves to run through defenders. He can explode out of cuts, and rarely loses one on one matchups due to his strength balance and violent running style.
Top End Speed 7.50 Guice doesn’t have elite speed, but he can break away from defenders in the open field. He doesn’t get caught from behind very often. He is a powerful runner that has the ability to run away from defenders and break off chunk gains on a consistent basis. He has outstanding short area quickness and burst.
With Ball in Hands
Vision/Instincts 6.50 Guice is a naturally instinctive runner who can consistently find the whole and move through it fast. He can avoid contact on inside runs and has the physicality to run through initial contact. Guice often looks for contact, and can miss cutback lanes. He needs to be more patient and watch for openings when his first option closes.
Cutting Ability 7.50 Guice possesses great cutting ability. His quick feet and balance help him avoid defenders in the open field.
Elusiveness 6.50 He doesn’t have elite elusiveness, but he has excellent short area quickness and has the ability make defenders miss in the open field.
Yards After Contact 9.50 Guice is a physical runner who gains yardage after contact on almost every play. He utilizes a violent running style and often initiates contact. He consistently wins one on one matches, and often requires multiple defenders to bring him to the ground.
Ball Security 7.00 Guice has had some trouble in past years securing the ball; however, he corrected this issue this past season by only fumbling once in 255 touches. He takes care of the ball and holds it high and tight often grasping the ball with two hands when running through tight holes or on the goal line.
Receiving
Hands 7.00 Guice has very soft hands, and he can catch the ball away from his body with relative ease.
Route Running 6.50 LSU used Guice as their featured three down back. He lined up all over their offense in an attempt to spread out the opposing defense. He played in the backfield, in the slot and out wide occasionally. He didn’t have a wide variety of their route tree at his disposal, but he was very fluid on the routes he needed to run.
Ability In Space 8.00 Guice has a great ability to avoid or run over defenders in open field. He can quickly turn up field and gain quality yards after the catch.
Ability to Separate 6.50 He isn’t the most polished route runner, but he has the ability to gain separation due to his agility and quickness.
Blocking
Lead Blocking 6.00 Guice is good blocker; however, he doesn’t do to much lead blocking. He is an athletic player who is capable of playing in multiple areas on the field. He is very physical and strong, and I believe he has the capability to be a good lead blocker. He has good effort on each play.
Blocking In Space 6.00 Guice can overextend on some blocks, but has good effort and often moves the defender or occupies him for enough time to spring the runner.
Pass Blocking 7.50 Guice is a great pass blocker. He often picks up the blitz, and can give his QB extra time in the pocket.
Situational Awareness 7.50 He can pick up the blitz, or chip a rusher before running his route. If his QB is in trouble he will attempt to get in the way of the rusher, or he will run a route as an outlet option.
Competitiveness
Toughness 9.00 Guice is very tough. He is a physically daunting runner that creates additional yardage after initial contact. He always falls forward and gains additional yards out of nothing. Rarely gets caught for a loss.
Production 8.00 Guice has had a lot of success in LSU’s offensive system. He split carries with the 4th overall pick in Leonard Fournette throughout the 2016–2017 season and became the featured back this past year. He runs hard on every touch and continuously turns negative yards into positive. He has a career average of 6.5 yards per carry.
Consistency/Motor 9.00 Guice is very consistent. He plays to the whistle on every snap and makes wannabe tacklers pay. He initiates contact and fights for extra yards on each play.
Team Player 8.50 Guice will do anything asked of him. He loves the game and wants to help in every aspect. He is a leader on and off the field, and will block downfield to help spring another runner. All he wants to do is succeed and win.
Intelligence
Instincts 7.50 Guice has natural instincts. He can see the whole and bulldoze his way through it. He can sense the blitz, and often knows who to pick up, but can occasionally get sloppy and miss the block or misread the rush.
Learn/Retain 9.50 Guice has played for three different offensive coordinators and has retained a lot of different information form his collegiate career. He has had an extremely productive three years in LSU’s offense and displays knowledge of the system each time he steps on the field. LSU utilizes a pro-style offense, which will help him adapt to the next level.
Versatility 8.50 Guice is very versatile. He is an extremely hard worker and is always looking to help his team succeed. He is a violent runner with the ability to catch the ball coming out of the backfield and pass block. He is a three down back, and will be a featured back at the next level.
Strengths
Guice is an extremely physical runner with excellent power, quickness and agility. He has great burst and explosion to the hole, and the patience to let his blocks develop. Guice runs with excellent pad level, lowering his shoulder on contact; he often seeks out defenders in the second or third levels. He has excellent contact balance, as he can bounce off would-be tacklers keeping his feet to gain extra yards. He doesn’t have elite speed, but he can break away from defenders in the open field, and he possesses outstanding short area and lateral quickness. He is effective on perimeter runs, but his bread and butter is as the hammer running inside. Guice has displayed good ball skills and soft hands. He is a very instinctive runner with all the tools to be effective at the next level.
Weaknesses
Guice is a daunting runner with the makings to be a three down workhorse at the next level; however, he is at his best when running between the tackles. He is effective on perimeter runs, but can occasionally be stopped before obtaining the corner. He doesn’t possess the home-run speed some of the other prospects do. Guice acts as a hammer in the run game. He loves contact and would rather initiate the hit than avoid a tackle. He doesn’t have great elusiveness in open field. His short area quickness helps him avoid defenders, but he loves running through tacklers. Guice is such a tough and physical runner that thrives on collisions, that his durability is concerning. He is built for a lead back role and 25+ touches a game; however, with his play style how long can he withstand injury?
Big Picture
Derrius Guice is a violent runner that displays excellent pad level lowering his shoulder on contact. He possesses excellent short area and lateral quickness that makes up for not having elite speed. He has great contact balance displaying the ability to keep his feet and bounce off defenders. He excels when running between the tackles, and has shown adequate ball skills in his limited opportunities at LSU. He is an excellent pass protector who is able to pick up the blitz and buy extra time for his quarterback. Guice can over extend occasionally when blocking in space. He is a very instinctive player, and was a leader this past season in LSU’s pro-style offense. He is a very tough player and an incredibly hard working athlete. His versatility and play style show that he can be the workhorse in an NFL offense. He has the build, talent and potential to become a three down back in an NFL scheme. He has all the tools and physicality to touch the ball 20–25 times per game.