Where Tre Mason Wins
Mason, despite being stereotyped as a power back, is one of the better second-level runners, or "space backs" in this draft class. When he gains a head of a steam and gets to the 2nd level and beyond, he runs with enough burst, balance, strength, and aggression to break tackles and make defenders miss. Mason does not possesses very good change-of-direction skills, but he is a crafty runner in space who knows how to set up defenders, string moves together, and has a pretty nice jump cut.
Mason's strength shows at the line of scrimmage as well, as he can break first contact often -- when he doesn't false step out of his stance. He runs low to the ground and while not having great acceleration, he has above-average foot quickness and keeps his legs moving.
Where Tre Mason Needs To Improve
Mason is very patient runner, willing to let his blocks develop and never overrun his hole. This served as a double edge sword for Mason though, as too often he was too late to hit the hole and ran into his offensive line's back or a mob of defenders. He will have to improve his vision/decisiveness if he wants to be a consistent performer and create more plays for himself.
Mason also was inconsistent when asked to be more than an in-between the tackles runner. He does not possess the short area quickness to change directions in space or beat defenders to the edge. He also takes too many false steps out of his stance and at the line of scrimmage, which messes up both his burst and timing.
Mason will also not contribute much on third downs. He is an average receiving threat, but he shows little effort pass blocking and simply looked overmatched there, from a technique and physical standpoint.
Overall Impression
Mason is a very flashy player. He can go on long stretches of short gains and then bust a long run in the second space. His inconsistency and inability to contribute on third down likely leaves him as a committee running back, and I have trouble ever seeing him stepping into a long-time starting role.
Grade: 6.0, Day 3.