D’Onta Foreman reportedly declaring for the NFL Draft

Texas Longhorns running back D’Onta Foreman will forgo his senior season and declare for the NFL draft.

It has been an outstanding year for Texas Longhorns running back D’Onta Foreman, but it now appears that the junior is ready to take his football career to the next level.

Foreman announced on Wednesday that he will be hosting a press conference to discuss his future with the program. The Longhorns running back has a key contributor to the team’s offense, running for 2,028 yards and 15 touchdowns on 323 carries this season.

Sports Illustrated’s Pete Thamel reported that Foreman’s announcement will be that he is planning on entering the NFL draft.

Unfortunately, the Longhorns weren’t able to capitalize on Foreman’s impressive season, going just 5-7 on the year. A rough season that included a loss to Kansas led to the team firing Charlie Strong and hiring Houston Cougars coach Tom Herman to replace him.

Foreman could have spent his senior year learning under Herman to help get the new era at Texas started, but given the short careers of NFL running backs, the junior reportedly thought it would be best to declare now. After all, Foreman had carried the ball at least 30 times in each of the last five games of the year, including 51 carries against Kansas.

For a running back with such a heavy workload, Foreman only has a limited number of strong years left in the tank, so no one can blame him for wanting to get paid to run the football while he’s still playing at a high level.

The big question now will be where Foreman will get drafted. He’ll be competing for a first-round pick against other prospects like Leonard Fournette, Dalvin Cook, Christian McCaffrey and Royce Freeman.

Foreman definitely has first-round potential. At 6’1” and 249 pounds, Foreman is a big power back with the vision and toughness to pick up big chunks of yards. He’s also more than capable of protecting his QB in pass protection, rarely giving up pressure.

Next: 2017 NFL Mock Draft

The biggest concern scouts will have regarding Foreman is his ball security. The Texas running back lost six fumbles this year, which is far too many for any prospect. If he can limit his turnovers in the NFL, however, Foreman compares well to someone like Eddie Lacy.

There’s plenty of time between now and the NFL draft, so we’ll be keeping a close eye on Foreman during offseason workouts and the NFL Scouting Combine.