Oliver Is NFL Ready

While Khalil Mack was the center of attention at UB Pro Day Tuesday morning, there was another Bulls star that helped improve his draft stock significantly.

That would be running back Branden Oliver.

Buffalo’s all-time leading rusher, Oliver wasn’t invited to the NFL combine after a stellar Bulls career.

Ranked 45th out of 228 ranked running backs on nfldraftscout.com, it appears that many people have overlooked the short but extremely physical runner.

At 5-7, it’s easy to see why many would look past him. Oliver doesn’t have the height of a starting NFL running back but what he lacks in height, he makes up for in muscle.

Oliver is 200 plus pounds and a very intense, physical runner. A three-year starter, Oliver ran for 4,049 yards and 33 touchdowns during his Bulls career.

Still, he needed a solid pro-day Tuesday morning if he had any hopes of being drafted come May. He did exactly that.

Oliver ran a 4.63 in the 40-yard dash and put up 26 reps on the bench press. While not the fastest 40-time, it’s decent enough for Oliver to be on NFL teams radar.

He may not be a top prospect but Oliver is definitely NFL ready. He’s a sleeper to keep an eye on and could be a late-round draft pick.

While his future might be as a backup running back, Oliver has done a solid job of putting himself in a position to make a name for himself.

Now it’s just time to wait till May to see if his name gets called.