Auburn RB Tank Bigsby has been on the 2023 NFL Draft radar since his breakout freshman season, but now the Tigers star’s scouting report is carrying more interest in his third year. While the offense in Auburn has, at times, diluted Bigsby’s skill set, there’s still more than enough tape to get a feel for what he can offer an NFL team.
Tank Bigsby NFL Draft Profile
- Position: Running Back
- School: Auburn
- Current Year: Junior
- Height/Weight: 6’0″, 213 pounds
Bigsby was part of a storied 2020 RB recruiting class that included Bijan Robinson, Jahmyr Gibbs, and Zach Evans. Bigsby was the fourth-ranked RB of the group — a high four-star talent who had offers from a host of high-level Power Five programs.
A native of Hogansville, Georgia, Bigsby chose to play with the Auburn Tigers. It was a decision that yielded his early opportunities, and it’s gone on to bring him stardom on the SEC stage.
Bigsby started off hot in 2020, with 138 carries for 834 yards and five touchdowns as a true freshman. He embarked on a career-defining campaign in 2021, with 223 carries for 1,099 yards and 10 scores. And so far in 2022, he’s on pace to keep his production piling — with 524 yards and six touchdowns on 99 attempts to this point.
Production and talent are two things that can’t be disputed with Bigsby. At this point, we know he’s very much a draftable RB prospect. But where on the gradient does he fall? That’s what we’re here to find out.
Tank Bigsby’s Scouting Report
In a stacked 2023 NFL Draft RB class, Bigsby might just have the tools to challenge for early-round capital. Here’s how the aptly-named RB grades out on tape.
Bigsby’s Positives
Bigsby was born to be a running back. But stylistically, he’s not the kind of RB you’d envision when first hearing his name. There’s a definite physicality element to Bigsby’s game, but explosiveness and agility are two of the most prominent qualities on the Auburn RB’s tape.
Bigsby is a quick accelerator on cuts. He has a touchy throttle button and uses it with impressive freedom. He also brings great long-track explosiveness upfield and can stretch space when he has an opening.
Going further, Bigsby is controlled with his throttle and has shown he can speed up and hit an extra gear to evade threats of contact. Even when he’s not working with a lot of space, he has the explosiveness to make the most of small seams at the second level.
Bigsby has enough long speed to stress defenses downfield and stretches for big runs when he has space. But his agility and twitch are traits that allow him to find space in the first place.
Bigsby has high-end corrective twitch when approaching holes and can use fast feet and lateral twitch to adjust attack angles at a moment’s notice. He’s an energetic runner with near-elite foot speed. His feet are constantly moving and rarely delay out of cuts.
Expanding on his agility, Bigsby has a superb horizontal cutting ability. He can freely snap open and closed with his strides while using stride variations to manage condensed spaces. With his foot speed and urgency, he can quickly redirect from lateral to vertical motion and surge through lanes.
In a similar vein, Bigsby transitions upfield and supplements acceleration incredibly quickly out of cuts. The Auburn RB can levy cuts at insane angles to escape contact and breach contain.
MORE: PFN Mock Draft Simulator
Bigsby is an agile, fleet-footed runner, and his mix of vision and creative instincts help to maximize that trait. The Auburn RB has exceptional processing speed. He can widen his steps to counter outside when the middle of the line caves, even during the exchange. He can also quickly recognize open gaps and attack those lanes, and he rarely wastes time in the backfield.
Going further, Bigsby has shown he can identify surging defenders incredibly quickly and has great reaction speed when adapting. The Tigers’ playmaker has good vision in space as well. He can detect defenders closing in from lateral angles and preemptively deconstruct pursuit paths with cuts.
Bigsby is a patient runner who’s comfortable traversing the backfield with his hips and eyes forward while tracking laterally. Moreover, he has the brisk processing in space to quickly and instinctively correct his positioning when needed, and he can quickly feel cutback lanes and flow to them naturally.
Bigsby is very efficient in his use of space and very comfortable splicing through small gaps to the second level. He can use brisk jump cuts to set up his runs in the backfield. Overall, he’s an instinctive, proactive runner in space who can use stride variations to disrupt angles and maintain cushion. But he also has a good feel for creases when entering the second level. He can hit the hole, then juke and surge upfield.
Most notably, Bigsby is comfortable adapting when defenders penetrate early but is also quick to find ground upfield again. With his instincts and feel, the Auburn RB can pry through incredibly tight spaces and escape to the second level. He very naturally gets low and reduces his surface area to slip through cracks in the defensive front.
While Bigsby isn’t the largest back at 213 pounds, he has shown he can churn through arm tackles while maintaining his strides upfield. The Auburn RB has good balance squeezing through contested gaps.
He’s able to get skinny and pry forward while keeping his legs active. Furthermore, Bigsby has shown he can withstand solo tackles and recollect his feet after contact, and he can peel through tackle attempts with foot speed and balance.
Bigsby isn’t a bruiser, but he does consistently work forward and reach for extra yardage after encountering initial contact. He can use targeted bouts of physicality like stiff arms to scrape away defenders while keeping stride, and he’s willing to lower his shoulder and finish runs forward with physicality.
Most importantly, Bigsby maximizes his ability amidst contact with his running style. He’s a hard-charging runner who leads with his upper body to acquire leverage and grate through contact, using his lower body to muscle through.
Bigsby’s value isn’t quite as distinct on passing downs, but he does have some utility here. The Auburn RB has shown he can guide the ball in as a pass catcher, and he has the focus and body control to adjust for low passes in-stride, as well as secure bobbled passes on the second attempt. Additionally, he’s a willing pass protector who can keep a wide base and tight hands when engaging defenders.
Bigsby’s Areas for Improvement
One could argue that Bigsby doesn’t have an elite trait, even if his profile as a 2023 NFL Draft prospect is very well-rounded. But going one step further, his size — while solid — may be a slight caveat in his NFL projection.
Bigsby’s frame, while above average in size, lacks elite mass and density. The Auburn RB doesn’t quite have the mass to consistently truck through solo tackle attempts. And in a similar vein, he also doesn’t quite have the contact balance to consistently bounce off of direct contact.
Expanding elsewhere, Bigsby’s full-field vision can be better at times. He doesn’t always see available lanes to bounce runs outside. And at times, he can better identify blocking angles upfield and manipulate defenders by using said blocking angles. Bigsby sometimes hugs the line too closely on outside runs and unnecessarily places himself in congested space.
Going further, while Bigsby has excellent foot speed and twitch, he can sometimes be more efficient with this twitch. He has some wasted motion and can better sync feet and upper body on occasion. This wasted motion can draw defenders in and reduce space for Bigsby.
In the passing phase, Bigsby sometimes resorts to body-catching and hugs the ball to his frame, which can attract drops. And while he has shown he can transition to the RAC phase efficiently, there are instances where he can more quickly set his feet in space. Finally, while Bigsby has good speed, he doesn’t quite have elite breakaway gear.
Current draft projection for Auburn RB Tank Bigsby
In a strong RB class, it’s hard to tell where Bigsby will settle in as a prospect. But on my scale, he’s a strong Day 2 prospect with early Day 2 ability depending on preference. Round 1 is a range reserved for more complete three-down prospects, but anywhere in the Day 2 range, Bigsby is a worthwhile investment with a well-rounded profile and starter’s traits.
As menacing as Bigsby’s name is, his finesse, twitch, and foot speed constitute some of the strongest elements of his profile. Bigsby’s feet are essentially always churning, and the Auburn RB’s hyperactive style allows him to make the most of small creases in the defense, as well as adapt and follow secondary lanes when he needs to.
MORE: 2023 NFL Draft Big Board
Bigsby has great vision and creative instincts, traits that help magnify his foot speed and twitch. And once he finds a lane to stretch through, he very naturally lowers his pad level, scrapes through contact, and exhausts runs of their full potential value with his explosiveness.
Bigsby isn’t an elite receiving threat, as he can become a more natural hands catcher and expand his route tree. But as a pure runner with serviceable pass protection ability, Bigsby brings plenty to like. He can be a scheme-diverse and situation-diverse runner with his ability to explode through gaps and maximize space.
Even in a strong RB class, Bigsby is a prospect who shouldn’t make it out of Day 2.