Christian McCaffrey is a 2-year Pass-Catching Back for Stanford. Christian's 2016 season ranks in the 38th percentile nationally by opponent-adjusted EPA per play across 286 plays — a developing rate for the RB.
Third-down weapon out of the backfield. Routes, hands, and separation in coverage define this role as much as rushing.
Players from 2014–2024 matched on EPA efficiency, play volume, and adjusted value tier — not just one metric.
| Player | Team | Yr | Plays | WEPA/play | Line val | Total EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saquon Barkley | Penn State | 2016 | 288 | 0.340 | 3.9 | 97.9 |
| Dalvin Cook | Florida State | 2016 | 292 | 0.340 | 4.3 | 99.3 |
| Breece Hall | Iowa State | 2020 | 301 | 0.340 | 4.5 | 102.3 |
| Eno Benjamin | Arizona State | 2018 | 316 | 0.330 | 4.6 | 104.3 |
| Jonathan Taylor | Wisconsin | 2017 | 307 | 0.350 | 4.8 | 107.4 |
Comps are statistical — efficiency, volume, and value tier all factor in. Style and conference context differ.
| Wk | Opponent | Result | Opp SP+ | Car | Rush Yds | Avg | Rush TD | Rec | Rec Yds | Rec TD | EPA/play |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | vsKansas State | W26-13 | 8.2 | 22 | 126 | 5.7 | 2 | 7 | 40 | 0 | 0.07 |
| 3 | vsUSC | W27-10 | 23.6 | 31 | 172 | 5.5 | 1 | 3 | 66 | 1 | 0.29 |
| 4 | @UCLA | W22-13 | 9.1 | 26 |
Usage = share of team plays (CFBD has no true snap counts).
Chart shows per-game EPA (bars) and rolling 5-game average (line). Season breaks marked with dashed lines. Line value = est. points over replacement per game.
Car 30 · Rush Yds 204 · Avg 6.8 · Rush TD 1
| 138 |
| 5.3 |
| 0 |
| 2 |
| 13 |
| 0 |
| 0.14 |
| 5 | @Washington | L6-44 | 26.7 | 12 | 49 | 4.1 | 0 | 5 | 30 | 0 | 0.06 |
| 6 | vsWashington State | L16-42 | 6.2 | 8 | 35 | 4.4 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0.04 |
| 8 | vsColorado | L5-10 | 6.3 | 21 | 92 | 4.4 | 0 | 2 | 26 | 0 | 0.08 |
| 9 | @Arizona | W34-10 | -4.5 | 23 | 169 | 7.3 | 2 | 4 | 27 | 1 | 0.44 |
| 10 | vsOregon State | W26-15 | -4.6 | 32 | 199 | 6.2 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0.05 |
| 11 | @Oregon | W52-27 | 6.1 | 17 | 135 | 7.9 | 3 | 5 | 52 | 0 | 0.43 |
| 12 | @California | W45-31 | 2.4 | 31 | 284 | 9.2 | 3 | 4 | 22 | 0 | 0.61 |
| 13 | vsRice | W41-17 | -16.5 | 30 | 204 | 6.8 | 1 | 2 | 23 | 1 | 0.39 |
