2023 Dynasty Rookie Post-Draft Update: Kenny McIntosh

Kenny McIntosh

Bruce Matson Posted On June 22, 2023

The NFL Draft is behind us, rookie drafts are taking place, and as dynasty managers, we are looking ahead to the upcoming season. In our Dynasty Rookie Post-Draft Update series, we break down all the incoming fantasy-relevant rookies, looking at their profiles and where they fit. The basis of the rookie profile involves the usage of STORM analysis, focusing on five key components: Situation, Talent, Opportunity, Risk, and Market.

SITUATION

Name: Kenny McIntosh

Position: Running Back

Pro Team: Seattle Seahawks

College Team: Georgia

Draft Status: Round seventh, 237^th overall

This year’s running back class was billed as one of the most talented classes we’ve ever seen. The class had everything from a generational prospect to a three-down grinder and even potential late-round gems. One diamond in the rough is Kenny McIntosh. The Seattle Seahawks drafted him in the seventh round of the 2023 NFL Draft. This was a big surprise, considering many draft analysts had him pegged as a mid-round selection going into the draft.

Every so often, we get a running back that comes out of nowhere and dominates the league. Some markers in McIntosh’s profile could drive him into a key producer. Until that happens, he has to surpass the stigma of his seventh-round draft capital and outwork one of the most talented running back depth charts in the league.

Situations like these are why we love underdog stories.

Many draft analysts didn’t expect most of the running backs in this year’s class to fall late into the draft’s third day. This year’s class was advertised as one of the best groups of running backs that we’ve ever seen enter the draft. The NFL said otherwise by letting most of the running backs that the industry deemed talented fall further in the draft than what was projected.

One of the talented running backs in this year’s draft was Kenny McIntosh. He had middle-round pick written all over him but fell to the seventh round, where he got selected by the Seattle Seahawks. Ironically, the Seahawks already spent a second-round pick on Zach Charbonnet to go along with Kenneth Walker, who they drafted in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft.

It’s easy to see that the Seahawks value the running back position. Now they are stacked with multiple young horses who all have the potential of contributing to the offense. McIntosh will have to fight for every opportunity since Walker, who was one of the best young talents in the league, isn’t going to hand over his touches. Charbonnet was ranked as one of the top rushers in the 2023 draft class and is projected to share the backfield with Walker.

McIntosh’s ability to catch passes out of the backfield while also doing some dirty work between the tackles will provide value to the team. When injuries do impact the depth at the running back position, he should be able to jump right in and handle some of the load, making him a valuable piece to the offense.

TALENT

Kenny McIntosh Combine Results:

Height: 6’0″

Weight: 204 lbs

Arm: 30 ½”

Hand: 9″

40-Yard Dash: 4.62 seconds

10-Yard Dash: 1.51 seconds

Vertical Jump: 32 ½’’ – Pro Day

Broad Jump: 113″ – Pro Day

McIntosh did not test well at the NFL Combine and his pro day. This is probably why he fell in the draft. With the competition being stiff at the running back position, why spend significant draft capital on the running back who underperformed in their workouts when there’s plenty of talent on the draft board?

His 4.62 40-yard dash indicates he’s fast enough to get the job done at the NFL level. We’ve seen plenty of running backs produce with a forty time in his range. However, his size-adjusted speed ranks in the 27^th percentile among running back prospects.

His vertical and Broad Jump numbers are not great and are indicators that he lacks burst due to limited pop off his step, causing him to need to take a little extra time to hit top-end speed. Overall, his workout numbers suggest that he’s a suboptimal athlete, making it very hard to project him as being a lead back for an NFL offense.

The caveat to his workout numbers is what we see on film. McIntosh is a very assertive player. He’s very decisive and plays faster than what his number from the combine indicates. We see him make up for these limitations by not hesitating to hit the running lane. Also, in the passing game, he does an amazing job at catching the ball and turning upfield. He’s more of a threat in the open field than what his testing numbers indicate. McIntosh is not a burner and will never be three yards and a cloud of dust, but his assertiveness makes up for the lack of athleticism.

The downside of being aggressive is not being patient while approaching the line of scrimmage. There are times when he will run up the backs of his blockers. He tends not to allow the blocks to develop before making his move. His approach to the line of scrimmage is not consistent. When things are open, he looks like a million bucks. McIntosh can get caught up if there’s trash in the running lane.

His ability to catch passes out of the backfield makes him stand out in this year’s draft class. Not only is he good in the screen game, but he can run routes downfield. In his final year at Georgia, he ran 230 routes while seeing 49 targets. His ability to eat up yards after the catch will make him very valuable in the passing game. McIntosh averaged 12.3 yards after the catch per reception which is a very strong number for a pass-catching running back. Georgia lined him up in the slot on 13.1 percent of his career snaps, indicating that he can be motioned to the slot and used as a receiver when needed.

One of the reasons why he’s good in the passing game is his footwork. McIntosh can cut on a dime. This also allows him to slash his way around tacklers when rushing the football. Since he’s very light on his feet, he can be very deceptive to defenders. One of the reasons why you shouldn’t write a player’s combine numbers in concrete. His game has intangibles that will allow him to carve a role at the NFL level.

OPPORTUNITY

Seattle Seahawks Depth Chart:

Courtesy of 4for4

The Seahawks have one of the most intriguing depth charts in the league. They are led by Geno Smith, who stepped up and overperformed last season. They added Jaxon Smith-Njigba to one of the most explosive wide receiver corps in the league. Then the running back depth chart is stacked with young talent.

We are expecting a battle between Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet for the bulk of the workload out of the backfield. Walker is the incumbent and had a good rookie season last year, so the odds are in his favor going into the 2023 season. DeeJay Dallas is in the last year of his contract and has accumulated 432 and four touchdowns during his last three years with the team.

Projecting out, it’s easy to see McIntosh taking over as the team’s RB3. There could be instances where he receives a larger workload when attrition attacks the running back depth chart. His ability to catch the ball out of the backfield might allow him to see some more snaps than expected on a game-to-game basis. However, fantasy gamers’ bread will be buttered if an injury happens to one of the lead-backs in the offense.

McIntosh’s ability to get yards after the catch and run routes downfield gives him a diverse skillset. This means he could be a thorn in the side of Walker and Charbonnet down the road if McIntosh can tap into his upside. Just because he fell to the seventh round of the draft doesn’t mean he’s a bad running back. This year’s draft class has a lot of talent. It leaked to the later rounds of the draft. He is good enough to steal a couple of carries here and there, frustrating fantasy gamers. With that being said, there’s a chance the Seahawks roll with a three-head monster, with him seeing a lesser amount of the workload but a lot of opportunities on passing downs. This scenario only happens if he plays to his upside. If he doesn’t, then he’s going to be the third wheel on the bench waiting for his opportunity for most of his career.

RISK

Courtesy of sports-reference.com

With just 1,582 yards and 16 touchdowns over his four-year career, McIntosh wasn’t the most productive running back during his four-year career. Georgia is always stacked with talent at the running back position. During his tenure there, he played with D’Andre Swift, Zamir White, and James Cook. He also battled several injuries throughout his career.

McIntosh has only one 100-yard rushing performance, and that was against Kentucky in 2022, where he rushed for 142 yards and one touchdown. His most memorable performance of his career came during the first game of his senior season against Oregon when he caught nine passes for 117 yards in front of a nationally televised audience.

The biggest risk for McIntosh is his late-round draft capital. Even though his talent profile outweighs where he fell in the draft, it doesn’t change that the Seahawks don’t have any sunk cost invested in him. This means they can move on from him without much reason, and it won’t affect them. If a shiny new running back falls to them in the draft in the next few years, they won’t think twice about his position on the team unless he’s wildly exceeding expectations.

His athletic profile indicates the cards are stacked against him. There aren’t many smaller running backs who run a 4.6 or slower in the league. Most of the running backs that are competitive with that 40-time are usually bigger running backs.

If both Zach Charbonnet and Kenneth Walker are the perfect one-two punch, we could barely see McIntosh on the field. This is a real possibility considering Charbonnet has a solid prospect profile, and Walker has already proven to be productive at the NFL level.

MARKET

Courtesy of MFL Rookie Dynasty ADP

McIntosh is falling to the fourth round or later in a lot of rookie drafts. In some leagues, he is going undrafted. On average, per MFL, he is being drafted as the RB19 in rookie drafts. The market is not willing to place many chips on him as he’s perceived to be buried on the Seahawks’ depth chart with no draft capital backing him up.

Looking at the macro, McIntosh can be valued as a flier for the backend of your depth chart. More than likely, you are going to move on from him at some point, but considering that we’ve seen running back depth charts get dismantled by injuries before, he could be a player you might want to have hanging around your taxi squad. You are more likely to want to stash him if you have either Charbonnet or Walker on your team.

Courtesy of DLF’s Dynasty Trade Analyzer

The Dynasty Trade Analyzer has McIntosh valued as a late fourth-round rookie draft pick. Some veteran players valued in his range our James Robinson, Mac Jones, Van Jefferson, Cade Otton, Corey Davis, Terrace Marshall, and Chuba Hubbard. Just like ADP, the Trade Analyzer values him as a late-round flier to stash on the backend of your roster.

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Bruce Matson

Contributor at Dynasty League Football

I'm a financial counselor for a hospital in South Central Ohio. I graduated from Muskingum University with a bachelor's in business while minoring in Economics and Accounting. I won my first fantasy football title with Jake Plummer as my quarterback.