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Scouts: Hill a ‘Steal’ in Seventh Round

Originally posted on FanNation Packer Central
By Bill Huber | Last updated 5/24/21

With a seventh-round pick, a team might as well swing for the fences. It’s the ultimate low-risk, high-reward draft pick.

From that perspective, the Green Bay Packers’ selection of Mississippi State running back Kylin Hill with the fourth-to-last pick of the 2021 NFL Draft was universally praised by our scouting sources.

“That’s a great pick,” one area scout said. “I was surprised he was on the board in the sixth, let alone the end of the seventh.”

In 2019, Hill rushed for 1,350 yards (5.6 average) and 10 touchdowns. Hill paced the SEC in rushing yards per game, was second-team all-conference and won the Conerly Trophy as the best college player in the state of Mississippi.

“He’s maybe a third-round pick last year,” the scout continued.

Then came the 2020 season, which was nothing short of a disaster from a professional perspective. First, the Bulldogs hired Mike Leach as a coach. Leach is an offensive mastermind and a quarterback’s best friend, but running games traditionally are an afterthought in his game plans. Sure enough, in three games, Hill rushed just 15 times for 58 yards (3.9 average). He was suspended for one game, “unavailable” for the next and opted out of the rest of the season. Hill attributed the decision to his family being struck by COVID and a brother’s brain surgery, though the decision didn’t sit well evaluators.

“We liked him,” another area scout said. “The further away from home he is, the better just because of some of the influences. Good player, good kid, has some talent. He could be a surprise. With Aaron Jones there, maybe not a ton of opportunities but he’ll flash when he does get on the field.”

Even with the abbreviated senior season, Hill finished eighth in school history with 2,535 rushing yards. With Leach, there was talk of how he might lead the SEC in yards from scrimmage. That didn’t come to fruition, but Hill reacquainted himself with scouts with a strong week at the Senior Bowl.

“Kylin’s a talent,” Senior Bowl executive director Jim Nagy said. “When I was still scouting in the league, he popped on tape as a true freshman at Mississippi State. I never thought he’d make it to his senior year. Based off that freshman tape, I thought he’d be a three-and-done guy. We were lucky to get him in the Senior Bowl this year and had a nice week. What he was able to show this year on tape in that offense for Coach Leach is that he can really catch it.”

Nagy’s right about that. In three games, he caught 23-of-27 passes (one drop) for 237 yards (10.3 average). He tied the school record with 15 catches vs. Kentucky and broke the school record for most receiving yards by a running back with 158 vs. LSU.

“You saw enough in that one game (against LSU) that he was a guy that can play on third down,” Nagy said. “He had some really nice pass-pro reps here at the Senior Bowl, so he’s physically stout enough to hold up in pass pro, so that’s another good thing. He adds to the depth of that group. A guy that late in the draft, talent-wise, he shouldn’t have been there. To take a shot right there made a heck of a lot of sense.”

For his career, according to Sports Info Solutions, Hill averaged 3.2 yards after contact and forced 28 missed tackles per 100 touches. For context, North Carolina’s Michael Carter ranked fifth in the draft class with 28 missed tackles per 100 touches in 2020. He hasn’t fumbled since his freshman season, a stretch of 448 consecutive touches.

In Green Bay, he’ll join Dexter Williams, Patrick Taylor and Mike Weber in pursuit of a roster spot behind Jones and AJ Dillon.

“Put the character aside, he probably should have went in the fourth round,” a scouting director said. “I think the dude is a legit third-down back with enough run skills. I think he’s talented. The problem is, there’s some off-field stuff. He’s not a criminal or anything like that but being-a-pro-behavior stuff is probably why he fell into the seventh round. If they can control that other stuff, that’s a good steal in the seventh round. He’s a good back. He probably makes the team over those other guys. That’s a good pick.”