The list of running backs chosen ahead of Derrius Guice read like a who’s-who of SEC standouts. Greg McElroy watched them all. And he watched Leonard Fournette the year before as well.

McElroy, who played at Alabama and now serves as an analyst for ESPN’s SEC Network, reached a conclusion the Washington Redskins hope becomes an accurate foreshadowing.

“I like Sony Michel, I like Nick Chubb,” McElroy said, “but I thought Guice was better than both.”

And then McElroy referenced Fournette, Guice’s LSU teammate who was the fourth overall pick in 2017 and helped Jacksonville reach the AFC Championship Game.

“I liked Guice as much as I liked Fournette coming out,” McElroy said.

Whether or not Guice will top those other backs remains uncertain. Regardless, he’s generated excitement in Washington -- mainly because of comments such as the ones from McElroy. Guice didn’t fall to No. 59 because of his talent; rather, it stemmed from questions about his background.

Those who watched him, coached him or coached against him don’t doubt his ability. In three yeas at LSU, Guice ran for a combined 3,074 yards, having split time with Fournette in 2016.

“We recruited him, so we knew in high school he was a very competitive player,” Alabama coach Nick Saban said. “He’s tough, got a little dog in him in terms of when you play against him, he’s fighting for everything he gets. The guy has good ability and he’ll be a good player. I always had a tremendous amount of respect for him.”

Last season, Guice ran 19 times for 71 yards in a loss vs. Alabama, which was sandwiched between a 276-yard game against Mississippi and a 147-yard one against Arkansas.

In Washington, Guice eventually will be the starting back. In spring workouts, veteran Rob Kelley is working as the No. 1 back, a role he had before a high ankle sprain sidelined him for the season in Week 11. However, the Redskins drafted Guice for a reason and it’s to play him early.

There are questions, though, about what Guice can do -- or will do -- in the pass game. Chris Thompson will remain the third-down back. But they’ll also throw with Guice in the game, which means he’ll sometimes have to block and other times catch. And the more he can help in those areas, the more it can open up the offense.

At LSU last season, he caught 18 passes for 124 yards and two touchdowns. The previous year he caught nine passes for 106 yards and a touchdown. Most of LSU’s passing game centered on play-action, so the backs weren’t heavily involved in the routes.

“He’s big and strong enough to be good in blocking and he’s an outstanding route-runner,” said LSU offensive coordinator Steve Ensminger. “He has great ball skills and catches well. We just didn’t do it much [with the backs]. But he’ll adapt to that well. I’ve seen him do it in practice. Once a week in the season we went through pass protection and he was as good as there was in one-on-ones with the linebackers. He surprised us with his pass protection and route running.”

Former LSU coach Les Miles remembers watching Guice earn MVP honors in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl after his senior season in high school. In that game, Guice asked to play receiver -- and then caught two passes for touchdowns, covering 92 and then 61 yards.

“He went into the slot and just ran and shredded the secondary,” Miles said. “He has good ball skills, not great. He can catch the ball on any number of routes. I don’t know if he’ll be a spectacular receiver, but he’ll be a very good one. I like Derrius Guice. He’ll play a long time.”

As for his protection skills, Miles sounded as though he agreed with Redskins coach Jay Gruden, who called that an area to improve, something that would apply to most rookie backs. With Guice, it’s about learning the protections and reading the defense.

“He’s tougher than nails in protection,” Miles said. “Now, occasionally I’d see maybe he wasn’t as good by assignment as he was physically. He’s a physical beast. He can step in and take on a linebacker in a heartbeat, but I’ve seen him make mistakes.”

But what Ensminger liked is that he could use Guice and Fournette together. That meant Guice learning two positions -- fullback and tailback.

“Derrius is very intelligent,” Ensminger said.

In a few months, Guice will be able to start showing why others have faith in him. For now, his impact is pure speculation.

“He’s one of the steals of the draft,” McElroy said. “I don’t know everything that went on behind closed doors, but basing it entirely on tape, if you can play, you can play. I played with a lot of guys who are very interesting and unique but come game day you want them on your side and they’re incredible. He’s always been extremely personable.

“You have to have a really good game-changing back in that league. Guice can be that guy. I firmly believe it.”