By: Matt Bressington

The term “Three down back” refers to a Running back who can be effective in every fashion of the modern NFL game, in both running and catching the ball, but also blocking for a variety of plays. It’s a rare asset to a team but has shown to be fruitful if used to its full capabilities. A new German playmaker has burst onto the stage, the self-proclaimed “best RB in Germany and even Europe”, had an explosive entrance into the eyes of scouts with a 1000+ yard, 18 Touchdown and over 12 yards a carry season. Moving from his former Wiesbaden Phantoms to one of the strongest teams in Europe, the Cologne Crocodiles. Staring alongside many other top players in their respected classes. This year we could see one of the best young cores in Crocodiles history, with Ameln being the engine in the backfield. Having said that, we at Europe’s Elite have broken down the film to see what could potentially be a strong talent in D1 college football. 

Starting at the age of 15 with Montabaur Fighting Farmers, Ameln’s history of athletics shone from the get-go. Previous football experience and the recent addition of track training have distanced him from his competitors, figuratively and literally. Running a solid 4.69 at a PPI/247Sports combine in April is only the start, however, it’s the elusive One Cut style that has got him firmly in the top of the 2020 class. During this season he has utilised several impressive moves, ranging from spins and stiff arms to his patented jukes that have taken many players to the turf. His feet and breakaway speed are truly electric, many of his top plays have been touchdowns from 50, 60 or 70 yards. He has taken time to craft the patience from studying the NFL greats, evidence of this comes throughout his film. He can be found waiting for blocks to materialise before darting off into his gap for long runs, hence the 12 YPC. Lateral quickness, awareness and strength to run through arm tackles have all shown to be important weapons against some strong opposition, from this we can see he truly is a cut above the competition. This isn’t the only part of his game that sets him apart, constantly moving his feet through contact gains him a lot more yards, he is a natural athlete so he can pull off jumps and make plays the majority of those in his position can only visualise. 

Ameln would undoubtedly be a valued asset to any D2 school, especially looking for a guaranteed 15-25 touch a game player, who has shown many times he can break an abundance of tackles in the box and during outside runs. Furthermore, he could fit easily into D1AA systems, such as South East Missouri and Indiana State, because of his willingness to do it all, including special teams where he contributed some rattling blocks for his returner. The speed he shows around the corners could easily be utilized in a role similar to  Alvin Kamara and LeSean McCoy, where he can use his twitchy feet and bursts of explosive movements to gain substantial yardage. He is a severely underrated back in the European circuit, but we at Europe’s Elite think he just needs one opportunity to show all the critics how high his ceiling is.

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