Redskins select RB Bryce Love and G Wes Martin in round 4
April 27, 2019
by Steve Thomas
The Washington Redskins selected running back Bryce Love from Stanford with pick 10 in round four and guard Wes Martin from Indiana University with pick 29. Love joins an already crowded running back group and will have to look for playing time behind an already established top three in Derrius Guice, Adrian Peterson, and Chris Thompson. Martin hopes to fill what is almost certainly the biggest remaining hole on the Redskins roster.
Love, who is 5’9” and 200 pounds, spent four years at Stanford, playing in a total of 49 games, with 569 rushing attempts for 3,865 yards, for an average of 6.8 yards per attempt, and 30 touchdowns. He also had 49 receptions for 465 yards and 2 additional touchdowns. In 2018, Love had 166 carries for the Cardinal, gaining 739 yards, for an average of 4.5 yards per attempt, which is significantly below his average for his first three collegiate years. Love was highly celebrated after his 2017 junior season in which he averaged 8.1 yards per carry, gained 2,118 yards, won the Doak Walker Award, and was named as a Unanimous First Team All-American and the runner up for the Heisman Trophy, but elected to return to Stanford to earn his degree and finish off his collegiate career. Disaster struck, however, as he tore his ACL in Stanford’s final game of the regular season that was not nearly as successful at 2017 even before his injury. He was not able to run at the Combine, but comes from a family of track stars and when healthy is expected to run 4.35 second range. He did do the bench press, however, posting 18 reps at 225 pounds.
Love is known to be extremely intelligent, with high character and personal qualities. As a runner, he’s an explosive home run hitter and has the potential to be a #1 option. His downside (other than his health) is his small-ish size by NFL running back standards and his ability to gain yards after contact. If he’s healthy and can get on the field, neither of which being a certainty, he can be a contributor. Whether or not he’ll be ready for training camp is an open question. He could be a PUP candidate to start the season.
There’s no doubt that Love cost himself significant money by returning to Stanford for the 2018 season, but he’s at peace with his decision. He wrote about his decision in a column for The Player’s Tribune that was published on April 22, 2019. Read it by clicking here.
Martin, 6’2” and 311 pounds, spent four years at Indiana. He did not participate in the NFL Combine and is not on almost any draft boards, so the Redskins scouts clearly believe that they’ve found a hidden gem. The Redskins have a track record of finding unknown interior lineman such as Chase Roullier, so there’s reason to be hopeful.