Zack Moss is a running back for the Buffalo Bills, and went to college at Utah. Originally from Hialeah Gardens, Florida, Moss transferred from Mater Academy Charter School to Hallandale High School for his senior year, where he would play with quarterback Tyler Huntley, who would eventually become his teammate at Utah as well. Moss ran for 1,098 yards and 17 touchdowns on 145 carries during his senior season at Hallandale, and would join Utah as a three-star running back from the 2016 recruiting class. During his time at Utah, Moss’ college stats totaled 712-4067-38, and was named Second-team All-Pac-12 in 2018, only to be named First-team All-Pac-12 as a senior along with Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Year. The Bills would go on to draft Moss in the third round of the 2020 NFL Draft with the 86th overall pick to pair with 2019 running back Devin Singletary.
Zack Moss made a name for himself during his time at Utah as a tackle breaking machine and had pass-catching prowess in the form of a 9.7% college target share (75th-percentile). During his time at Utah, Moss boasted a 35.7% college dominator rating and a 6.1 career yards per carry. Moss finished his college career with a rushing line of 712-4,067-38, and also caught 66 passes for 685 yards and three touchdowns. At the combine, Moss posted a 29th-percentile 40-yard dash of 4.65.
As a rookie with the Bills, Moss totaled 481 rushing yards and four touchdowns in 13 games, and saw double-digit carries in four games, that included a rushing line of 41-189-1 in the team’s final four games. He ranked No. 37 with a 43.9% opportunity share as a rookie, and was seventh in juke rate (29.4%) and 27th in broken tackles (37). Fellow running back Devin Singletary failed to improve on his 2019 totals, leading some to believe that a running back competition was coming to Buffalo in 2021. In the early part of the season, Moss appeared to be a nuisance for fantasy managers rostering Singletary. In Weeks 2 through 4, Moss totaled four touchdowns while totaling 186 yards and 45.6 points, finishing as a top-24 fantasy back in each of those three weeks.
Moss had just a 40.6% opportunity share in 2021, and failed to surpass 100 carries, finishing the year with 96-345-4 and an underwhelming 3.5 true yards per carry. Even on a Bills team that enjoyed the No. 1 game script (+5.49) of any team last season, Moss failed to see significant opportunity relative to Singletary, who was 18th with a 59.4% opportunity share. Snaps never materialized for Moss last season, even in Buffalo’s passing game. Despite a reputation as a pass-catcher in college, Moss drew a disappointing 6.9% target share on 136 routes run and managed three drops on his 32 total targets. He ranked 44th in yards created (391) and underwhelmed in many other next gen stats at PlayerProfiler. The ultimate nail in the coffin for Moss’ 2021 season was when he was made a healthy scratch in the team’s divisional round playoff game against the Chiefs after seeing just one touch in the wild card round against the Patriots.
It’s difficult to say what Moss’ outlook is heading into 2022. He’s failed to do anything impressive on a Bills team that doesn’t feature a bonafide RB1, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see Buffalo look to add another running back via the draft or free agency. If the Bills do little to enhance their running backs this offseason, then Moss will likely be a small value at his ADP as the backup to Singletary. But he looks like a player drafters could likely avoid with little regret heading into his third season.
