Texas Longhorns Bijan Robinson is the No. 1 running back in the 2023 NFL Draft. And on some boards, he may be the top overall player. However, with the way the league views the position, he could go anywhere from in the top 10 to near the end of the first round. No matter where Robinson ends up on draft night, the team that gets him is getting a heck of a player. Looking at the Bijan Robinson scouting report, here are the three current and former stars who are the closest Bijan Robinson player comparisons.

Robinson is a 5-foot-11, 215-pound back who can do it all. He isn’t the fastest back in the draft, but he has enough speed to beat defenders to the outside and break a big play. He is also a tough and physical inside runner with good vision and balance who can run between the tackles and bounce off defenders who don’t wrap up and drag him down.

What really sets him apart with the Bijan Robinson scouting report, though, is his pass-catching ability. He is an excellent route-runner with soft hands, and he’ll be a matchup nightmare for linebackers and safeties trying to cover him. When he gets the ball in space on a pass, he can make people miss, and a big play is always possible.

That’s who the Texas running back is. Now, let’s look at the closest Bijan Robinson player comparisons for the 2023 NFL draft prospect.

3. Josh Jacobs

Las Vegas Raiders RB Josh Jacobs is also big and low to the ground like Bijan Robinson, and this past season, he led the league in all-purpose yards with 2,053.

The biggest similarity here with the Bijan Robinson scouting report is the vision. Jacobs is great at finishing the holes and exploding through them when he gets the opportunity. Like Robinson, Jacobs isn’t the fastest running back in the league, but he excels at finding lanes and hitting them hard.

Speed was a concern with Jacobs coming out of Alabama, as scouts didn’t know if he had the breakaway wheels to be a home run hitter at the NFL level. He sees the openings so well, though, that he can get a head start on defenders and take it to the house. In 2022, his 86-yard touchdown run to win his team’s Week 11 game in overtime vs. the Seattle Seahawks was the longest in the league last year.

The Josh Jacobs-Bijan Robinson player comparison makes a lot of sense with how they both play, and a Jacobs-style career seems like the floor for what Robinson could be in the NFL.

2. Saquon Barkley

The player you most often hear associated with Bijan Robinson is Saquon Barkley. That’s because Robinson is the best pro prospect to come out in the NFL draft since Barkley entered the league from Penn State back in 2018.

Like Barkley, Robinson is a powerful runner who can break arm tackles and get extra yards on every carry. The most Barkley-like trait, though, is his pass-catching.

In the NFL, Robinson can be more than just a RB. He is a receiver, too, who can lineup in the slot and challenge the secondary. He will make the life of whoever his new quarterback is much easier by being a dump-off outlet and excelling in the quick pass and screen pass game.

Robinson can be Saquon Barkley 2.0 possibly because he is slightly better than the New York Giants back in several areas. While they are both tough runners, Robinson has a nasty run-finishing streak that Barkley doesn’t where he punishes smaller defenders to pick up extra yards. Also, Robinson doesn’t have the injury concerns Barkley now has.

If Bijan Robinson is Saquon Barkley in the NFL, a high first-round pick on him in the 2023 NFL Draft is fully justified.

1. Walter Payton

This is the pie-in-the-sky Bijan Robinson player comparison. If Robinson meets or even exceeds all expectations, he could be on par with the late great Walter Payton.

Patience and balance are the two characteristics that Robinson has that will most remind old-school NFL fans of “Sweetness.” The Texas RB waits patiently for his blocks to set up, then hits the hole hard. And when defenders come for him, it can look like Bijan is made of jelly as players slip off as he pinballs down the field.

Watching any old highlight reel of Payton, you’ll see the same. And the change of direction and change of speed on any given run is also a similarity. The cuts, stutter steps, and shake that Payton showed are among the best in NFL history, and while it’s way too early to say Robinson can do exactly that, you do see hints of it on tape.

If the Walter Payton-Bijan Robinson player comparison comes to fruition, start measuring Robinson for his Hall of Fame jacket now.