Football

Southern Durham speedster Jaylen Wright drafted by the Dolphins

Wright is arguably the fastest running back in the 2024 NFL Draft.

Posted 2024-04-27T17:34:00+00:00 - Updated 2024-04-27T17:18:00+00:00

Jaylen Wright (12) of Southern Durham. Southern Durham defeated Northwood 49-3 on Homecoming night, Oct. 18, 2019. (Photo by: Jerrell Jordan)

Joel Bryant

The Miami Dolphins decided to add another super speedster at running back in the 2024 NFL Draft. This rusher is a product of North Carolina. He attended the University of Tennessee.

Former Southern Durham standout Jaylen Wright was selected by Miami with the 20th pick in the fourth round. The Dolphins traded a future third round pick to have the opportunity to draft Wright.

These football players from North Carolina are signed to NFL rosters

Wright was Pro Football Focus’ top-graded rusher among all SEC schools (91.0 grade) and set a school record for shortest time to 1,000 rushing yards in a season. He was second in the FBS with 7.4 yards-per-carry last fall. He exceeded 22 miles per hour on breakaway rushes.

During his junior season at Southern Durham, Wright rushed for 901 yards and five touchdowns on 89 carries. He did not get to play in his senior season as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. Wright chose to enroll early at Tennessee when the season was moved to spring 2021.