Most don’t realize it thanks to a guy by the name of Ezekiel Elliott, but Chicago Bears rookie running back Jordan Howard had an elite debut year a season ago.
Now he aims to improve and make a name for himself.
Coming off the strong year, Howard told Adam L. Jahns of the Chicago Sun-Times about his plan to improve:
“I want to be like 225 [pounds] during the season, so I’m still trying to cut weight,” said Howard, who weighed 230 at the combine in 2016.
“I thought it was going to be a much slower pace in the NFL because it wasn’t a lot of uptempo [offenses]. But the pace is still fast, so you have to be in great shape. They’re not expecting you to be getting into shape here. You’ve got to come in in shape and be ready.”
NFL defenses should worry about any sort of improvement from Howard—last year he rumbled for 1,313 yards and six touchdowns on a 5.2 per-carry average over 15 games. He caught 29 passes for 298 yards and a score to top if off.
Much to the frustration of fans, Chicago didn’t use Howard more than they did Matt Forte in past years, but part of it was probably the realization there wasn’t a reason to risk him on a two-win season. Another factor might’ve been his conditioning, which he seems intent on fixing this summer.
Either way, Howard seems ready to have another monster year behind one of the NFL’s elite interior offensive lines.
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