Buffalo Bills: Realistic expectations for Zack Moss in his rookie season

The Buffalo Bills used another third round pick at running back with the selection of Zack Moss and this is what fans realistically can expect from the rookie in 2020.

With Zack Moss now entering the equation for the Buffalo Bills, the question this article hopes to answer is “What can we really expect of Moss in 2020?”  by looking at previous stats and other factors to see if Moss can replicate his production at the NFL level.

Coming into the Buffalo Bills running back room, Moss goes from being a featured back at Utah to a role player, in a sense, with the Bills. As the NFL moves to be a league that encompasses more than one running back, be it a “power” back for short yardage or a  “speed” back for designed plays and more, Moss will split time with returning back, Devin Singletary.

Singletary who was taken in last year’s draft in the same round as Moss, will provide Brian Daboll with options that he has never had before. Last season, the Bills got by with an older Frank Gore and a fumble-happy T.J. Yeldon along with Singletary. When the season started, Singletary was supposed to learn under Gore. That plan lasted all of a few weeks as the talent that the former FAU running back brought to the Bills offense was too electric to be ignored. He quickly skyrocketed up the depth chart and soon took over the featured back position.

While at Utah, Moss broke numerous records including but not limited to: career carries with 712, career rushing yards with 4,167, career 100-yard rushing games with18 and career rushing touchdowns with 38, as well as being the first player in program history to have three 1,000-yard rushing seasons.

What are the realistic expectations for Zack Moss in 2020?

Though the same numbers are unlikely to repeat themselves due to the situation Moss is in with the Bills, it would be safe to assume that he would record similar numbers in the ballpark of Frank Gore’s. Gore finished his season in Buffalo with 588 rushing yards. Given the fact that Moss is coming into replacing Frank Gore, who saw less and less field time as the season wore on, and provides a physical punch that Singletary can’t, predicting that Moss would record north of 675 yards is not all that blasphemous to think.

With all the weapons that Buffalo has now, surprising their opposition will be critical as they don’t want to become predictable and complacent. When trotting Moss out onto the field behind Allen, his presence will not automatically tip their hand. This is because Moss is not only great at running the ball but can also stand his ground in pass coverage. This will allow Daboll to keep defensive front honest and not always expect the run when he is seen.

In addition, the offensive line has gotten better. With Cody Ford entering his second season in the NFL and Dion Dawkins, his fourth, along with a host of other additions to the offensive line, there will be plenty of chances for Moss to get up into the second level of the defense and break off some of those incredible runs seen at Utah on his way to recording 675 yards or more in 2020.