What are reasonable expectations for Arizona Cardinals RB Jeremiyah Love?
Only two rookie running backs have ever reached 1,000 rushing yards in a season. Jeremiyah Love might not do it.
The Arizona Cardinals made running back Jeremiyah Love the third overall pick in the 2026 NFL draft. There is a lot of excitement as to what he can do his rookie season. Perhaps we should not expect too much, at least not monster numbers.
Why? While Love was extremely productive in college, he comes into the NFL without a heavy workload. In 2025, he had 199 carries and 226 total touches.
The Cardinals have had only two rookie 1,000-yard rushers in their history. Ottis Anderson set the record with 1,605 yards in 1979 with 331 carries. Ronald Moore had 1,018 yards on 263 carries in 1993.
Would it be wise for the Cardinals to give Love that much of a workload in his first NFL season after never doing it in college? By comparison, Bijan Robinson had 258 carries and 277 carries his final season in college. As a rookie, he had 272 total touches with 214 carries.