I think this football employment strategy will start spreading into the regular college season next year.
The last NFL players contract significantly reduced First Round pay checks, but guaranteed a four year contract (plus a fifth year team option).
The Top 25 NFL prospects, who are certain they will be drafted in the First Round, really need to think hard about dropping out of college after the eighth or ninth game of their last season.
High injury positions - running backs specifically - need to stop playing college ball even sooner.
Very few running backs get drafted in the First Round - just four in the last three years, and the highest pick was #24.
Why? Because no team wants to pay an injured or hobbled player for four years.
In my opinion, I think running backs should play just one or two entire seasons of college ball, then drop out and declare for the Draft after their third year. You cannot get drafted in the NFL until three years after high school graduation.
That’s why smart coaches will just focus on recruiting 3-star players instead of 5-star players. 3-star players pretty much know their chances of making the NFL are slim, so they are focused on achieving as much in college as possible, since this is their last hurrah at football.