Jadarian Price Scouting Report and Rookie Super Model Prospect Profile
Dwain McFarland breaks down the Rookie Super Model's analysis of incoming Notre Dame RB Jadarian Price and highlights his fantasy football outlook ahead of the 2026 draft.
The Robin to Jeremiyah Love's Batman in the Notre Dame backfield, Jadarian Price clocks in as the RB5 in the 2026 Rookie Super Model. For the full RB class, check out the 2026 RB Rookie Super Model.
If you're new to the model, here is an introductory breakdown of the Rookie Super Model, which rates players on a scale of 50 to 100 based on a composite score across Draft Capital, Production and Film. All of this data is integrated into our free NFL Draft Guide, full of big board rankings, mock drafts and more.
You can find a glossary of terms and stats used in this breakdown at the bottom of the prospect profile.
Scouting Report and Rookie Super Model Prospect Profile For Jadarian Price
Super Model Rating: 71 (51st)
Draft Pick (based on Mock Draft data): 50
Rookie Age: 22.9
Height: 71 inches
Weight: 203 pounds
Price was a four-star recruit in 2022 out of Denison High School in Texas. He played four seasons on varsity, compiling 4,990 rushing yards, 55 rushing TDs, 64 receptions, 587 receiving yards and three receiving TDs.
He lost his first year at Notre Dame to a pre-season ruptured Achilles tendon. In Year 2, he played in a rotational backup role with superstar Jeremiyah Love behind future NFL Draft pick, Audric Estime. Over his final two seasons, Price served as the change-of-pace RB to Love.
What the Production Says
With the hand that Price was dealt, playing alongside a future top-10 NFL Draft pick, it is almost impossible to post a good Production Rating (59). Using per-team-attempt data tells us more about a player's volume than their efficiency. While those data points are the most predictive of future performance, they are tough on rotational RBs like Price.
Year-Weighted YPTA: 0.85 (28th percentile)
Best YPTA: 1.12 (27th percentile)
Best RYPTPA: 0.27 (13th percentile)
Nerd note: What do these numbers mean?
YPTA: Adjusted yards per team attempt (pass + rush), with receiving yards double-weighted. Normalizes production across teams with different play volumes.
Year-Weighted YPTA: Weights Years 1-3 more heavily, where college production best predicts NFL success. Year 4 carries a negative correlation. Good players show up early.
Best YPTA: Career-high yards per team attempt season.
Best RYPTPA: Peak-season receiving yards per team pass attempt, normalizing production across run-heavy vs. pass-heavy offenses.
Ideally, in scenarios like this, we get at least one season without player overlap to provide us with some clues. This situation is one of the primary reasons I use best-season production as an input in the model. In this Price's case, it doesn't help us.
What we can say is that Price improved in YPTA every season and put up respectable per-game numbers over his final two years.
Price also added value on special teams with 22 returns for 794 yards (36.1 average) and three TDs. He led the nation in 2025 with 37.5 yards per return.
While there is a case to be made around Price's value as a runner and returner, things are tough in the receiving department. Even when isolating to plays where Price was on the field using route-based stats, he performed poorly.
Career YPRR: 0.80 (29th percentile)
Career TPRR: 9% (11th percentile)
We have seen varying results from prospects who had a career designed rush share under 30% (Price: 20%) due to a strong collegiate depth chart, but most were superior receiving options vs. Price:
James Cook | Georgia: 13%, 1.95 YPRR (69th percentile)
Brian Robinson Jr. | Alabama: 27%, 0.93 YPRR (33rd percentile)
Tony Pollard | Memphis: 10%, 1.74 YPRR (62nd percentile)
Jaydon Blue | Texas: 20%, 1.58 YPRR (56th percentile)
Beyond the Production
Here is the good news on Price: he ranks No. 2 in Film Rating for the 2026 RB class.
NFL.com Prospect Grade: 6.38 (54th percentile)
Career PFF Rushing & Receiving Grade: 72.0 (72nd percentile)
Lance Zierlein breaks his grades down into buckets, and Price falls in the "Will eventually be plus starter" range. Zierlein views Price as a "natural runner" with "elite vision". I found this sentence fascinating: "Price is highly instinctive, stacking moves to contour to run-lane spacing and avoid tacklers for as long as possible."
Essentially, Price knows how to play running back.
Zierlein's scouting notes align with Price's advanced rushing data profile. No other RB in the class tallied a higher 10-plus-yard attempt rate than Price.
Rushing Average Yards After Contact: 4.28 (64th percentile)
10-Plus Yard Attempts: 19% (67th percentile)
Price ran a 4.49-second 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine (62nd percentile), notching a 99.9 Speed Score (48th percentile). Those are good enough numbers for a player who wins on feel. However, Zierlein notes acceleration, top-end speed, power and fumbles as potential concerns. Price's career fumble rate (1.4%) was higher than the average prospect since 2017 (0.9%).
Nerd Note: Bill Barnwell invented Speed Score. It helps us understand how fast a player is relative to their weight. A 180-pound RB running a 4.40-second 40-yard dash isn't the same thing as a 215-pound back with the same time. Of all the testing data points from the NFL Scouting Combine, Speed Score carries the most signal for NFL RB production. Formula: Weight*200/(40-yard dash)4.
The former four-star recruit graded out much better as a runner than a receiver per career PFF Grades:
Career PFF Run Grade: 80.7 (85th percentile)
Career PFF Receiving Grade: 63.4 (49th percentile)
That data aligns with Price's YPRR and TPRR numbers, and Zierlein shared a similar sentiment, noting "limited third-down value."
Most of Price's targets came well behind the line of scrimmage (-2.6 aDOT). While he never dropped a pass, he struggled in pass pro with a career PFF Pass Block Grade of 38.5 (30th percentile). He allowed pressure on 7% of his pass-blocking reps, which is the average for RB prospects since 2017.
Fantasy Football Outlook For Jadarian Price
There have been 73 RBs who have garnered a Super Model rating between 66 and 76 since 2017, with 27% delivering a top-24 finish by Year 3.
Bottom line: The Rookie Super Model sees Price as an early Day 3 NFL Draft pick. While he gets credit for playing at a strong program (94 Program Quality Rating), his Production Rating (59) hurts him. However, it was an extreme situation with the Fighting Irish, playing with a future top-10 RB pick. With Price, we are betting on his Film Rating (81) being right and his instincts and vision as a runner helping him eventually carve out an early-down role in the NFL. But he must improve as a receiver and pass blocker to unlock an every-down role. Price is an RB4 with a shot at RB2 or RB3 upside in fantasy football.
Glossary of Terms In The Prospect Profile
Adjusted Career RYPTPA: Career receiving yards per team pass attempt adjusted for age, strength of schedule, QB play, teammate competition, aDOT, and alignment. Doesn't count games missed.
aDOT: Average depth of target in yards.
Career Targeted QB Passer Rating: Passer rating on WR's targets.
Contested catch rate: Percentage of contested targets caught.
Contested catch rate over expected: Percentage of contested targets caught after adjusting for aDOT.
Draft Capital Rating: Based on Chase Stuart's Draft Value Chart, an improved version of what many know as the Jimmy Johnson trade chart. It accounts for the larger drop-off in the first round and a flatter drop-off around the end of the second round.
FDPRR: First downs per route run. Often shown as a percentage (first downs divided by routes).
Film Rating: Based on NFL.com prospect grades from Lance Zierlein.
Production Rating: A combination of adjusted career RYPTPA and career targeted QB passer rating.
Program Quality Rating: ESPN's College Football Power Index is used to assess program quality. The model accounts for each school a prospect attended.
RYPTPA: receiving yards per team pass attempt.
SOS Rating: Based on strength of schedule (SOS) from Sports Reference. The model accounts for each school the prospect attended.
TargetShare: A player's percentage of team targets in games played.
TPRR: Targets per route run.
YAC: Average yards after the catch.
YAC over expected: YAC over expected after adjusting for aDOT.
YPG: Yards per game.
YPRR: Yards per route run.
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Nerd note: What do these numbers mean?
