Mohamed Ibrahim (Lions) NFL Draft Preview
Post-Draft Fantasy Impact
Mohamed Ibrahim went undrafted but was quickly signed by the Lions as an undrafted free agent. They also gave him a $100,000 signing bonus, which is typically given to seventh-round draft picks. What that basically means is that the Lions believe Ibrahim has a good shot at making the 53-man roster.
Ibrahim saw his draft stock drop mostly due to his injury history. Ibrahim ruptured his achilles in 2021, and that always spells trouble for Running Backs. That said, Ibrahim did return in his final season and rushed for over 1600 yards, showing his recovery was going swimmingly.
Ibrahim joins a very crowded Lion backfield, with David Montgomery and fellow rookie Jahmyr Gibbs slated to start. The Lions also still have Craig Reynolds and Jermar Jefferson, who have shown they are capable of handling solid workloads in the past.
For now, Ibrahim is probably not useable in fantasy. Unless he has an amazing summer in camp, I doubt he cracks the top three in the depth chart. Now I do believe Ibrahim is skilled enough to get work at the NFL level, but the Lions may opt to use their other four backs first.
We will just have to see if any news comes out that Ibrahim is moving up the depth chart, but for now, he seems at best like a potential deep waiver wire pickup.
Mohamed Ibrahim NFL Draft Preview
As a Badger fan myself, I am so happy to see Mohamed Ibrahim finally go to the NFL.
Ibrahim played five seasons for the Minnesota Golden Gophers and started every single year. As a freshman in 2018, Ibrahim rushed 202 times for 1160 yards and nine touchdowns. He followed that up with a much less utilized year, rushing only 114 times for 604 yards and seven touchdowns as a sophomore.
His junior season was shortened thanks to COVID, but he managed 1076 yards and 15 touchdowns on 202 carries in only seven games.
His senior season was cut extremely short after rupturing his Achilles tendon. He had rushed 30 times for 163 yards and two touchdowns before going down. In his final season with the Gophers, Ibrahim rushed a whopping 320 times for 1665 yards and 20 touchdowns.
Overall, Ibrahim only caught 22 passes for 145 yards over his entire collegiate career. He was a Third-Team All-American in 2020 and a First-Team All-Big 10 in 2020 and 2022.
He is currently considered a sixth-round pick.
I feel like nobody is talking about Mohamed Ibrahim.
I haven't studied him yet but what are your thoughts on him as a prospect? pic.twitter.com/0S7ueoyNmY
— Nick Penticoff (@NickPenticoff) March 26, 2023
Measurables
- 5’8″ 203 lbs
POSITIVES
Ibrahim is a good-sized Running Back who runs low to the ground. He isn’t easy to bring down and absorbs contact well.
He is patient, waiting for holes to open, and quick to make his move before it closes.
Ibrahim finishes his runs hard, often bowling over defenders or at least falling forward. Despite his lack of pass-catching experience, he has soft hands and is an option for Quarterbacks.
He is considered a good short-yardage back who can use his physicality to get first downs. He is decent in pass protection and picking up blitzes.
NEGATIVES
Ibrahim, although smaller in size, is not very quick. He is considered more of a short-yardage bruiser type of Back.
He lacks the true speed to beat defenders on the edge.
As I mentioned above, Ibrahim does have good hands but was underutilized at Minnesota. And probably his biggest negative is his injury history. Ibrahim has missed at least one game due to injury in four of five seasons. He also ruptured his Achilles in 2021, which has proven to be a tough comeback for NFL Running Backs. That said, he healed up and had a career year with over 300 carries the following season.
Ibrahim is one of the older Running Backs in the draft at 24 years old (25 in September), meaning he may not have a ton of time to be relevant in the NFL.
GRADE – C
It’s hard to believe Ibrahim won’t be a star in the NFL after watching him light up the Big 10, but his injury history and lack of speed could be what does him in.
Still, Ibrahim has the rushing, blocking, and pass-catching skills to be a pertinent part of most NFL offenses.
I don’t think he takes a starting role, but I do believe he will be utilized as a part of a committee versus being a straight-up backup. I also believe he is more skilled than some of the other backs who will go higher in the draft, but his injury history scares a lot of teams.
Happily married father of two boys. I love all sports, although prefer watching them since I’m a wildly mediocre athlete. And that’s why I write fantasy football articles! I’ve been writing for Fantasyfootballcalculator for over six years now. Besides that, I enjoy watching Badger football and basketball even though it raises my blood pressure. In my downtime, I enjoy traveling with my family, playing video games with friends, and golfing.
