Recent history does not paint promising picture for Cardinals and Jeremiyah Love

The school of thought in the NFL over the past two decades is to not draft running backs too high because you can find productive players at the position later in the draft. The Arizona Cardinals ignored that school of thought on Thursday night when they selected Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love with the No. 3 overall pick in the draft.

Love is regarded as one of the most talented players in this class and a potential superstar. 

He might very well turn out to be that type of player, and he might do that with the Cardinals right away.

That does not mean it is going to produce wins or a good team for the Cardinals, and recent history suggests it will not.

Recent history is not kind to teams taking running backs in the top five

It is a small sampling of players, but the teams that have gone with running backs this high in the draft over the past two decades do not have much to show for it.

Love is just the third running back to be selected in the top-three over the past 20 years, joining Trent Richardson with the Cleveland Browns in 2012 and Saquon Barkley with the New York Giants in 2017. 

Richardson ultimately ended up being a bust with Browns and later the Indianapolis Colts following a trade. The Browns went just 5-13 in the 18 games Richardson played for them before trading him, while Richardson played just four total years in the NFL.

While Barkley was an immediate star on an individual level, the Giants had just one playoff appearance to show for his five years with the team before losing him in free agency to the Philadelphia Eagles. 

The problem in both cases: It is awfully difficult to build a winning team around a running back. Even a good one.

Running backs are largely team-dependent and need the right offensive line and passing game around them to maximize their effectiveness. They should be the last piece of the puzzle. Not one of the first pieces. That is why Barkley worked out so well for the Eagles and so badly for the Giants. 

The Eagles had the right supporting cast in place. The Giants did not.

The Cardinals are in a situation similar to what the Giants were in with Barkley.

They have no quarterback.

They are lacking in playmakers on offense. 

Their offensive line is not particularly good. 

The defense was one of the worst in the NFL.

Making things even more confusing is that they signed Tyler Allgeier and are bringing back veteran James Conner. 

Is a running back going to fix all of that?

Love is a great talent. He might be a star. But it does not move the needle much for making the Cardinals a competitive team sooner.