Auburn’s Kamryn Pettway and Georgia’s Nick Chubb could have both declared themselves eligible for the 2017 NFL Draft following last season. While both have had their fair share of highlights during their college careers, based on what NFL draft analyst Lance Zierlein had to say about them Wednesday, both players made the right decision to return to school for the 2017 campaigns.

During a guest appearance on the Cole Cubelic Show, hosted by SEC Network analyst Cole Cubelic, Zierlein shared his opinions on both players after studying their tape. While the NFL analyst offered much praise, he didn’t hold back from criticizing the backs, either.

Here’s what Zierlein had to say when asked about Auburn’s massive 235-pound running back.

“He’s got a play demeanor that you love between the tackles,” Zierlein said on the air. “His two-yard run is a two-yard run, I’m not sure he can turn it into a five-yard run by making a subtle little move to the left and sliding out of the side of a gap so he can add some more yardage. I’m not sure that’s going to be him.

“Man, when he decides he’s hitting it, he’s hitting it. I really love his power, his physicality after contact.”

While Zierlein questions if and how Pettway’s game will translate to the NFL as well as SEC colleagues Bo Scarbrough and Derrius Guice, he loves his game at the college level.

“From a college standpoint, what I see from Pettway is a guy that can set a tone,” Zierlein continued. “When you have a chance to impose your will at some point in the game through the running game, that is a big demoraliser… That ability to say, ‘We can do this and you can’t do anything about it,’ is such a big big key for offenses and I think Auburn absolutely has that potential this year — without question.”

When discussing Nick Chubb, Zierlein’s information suggested last season the Georgia back was at less than 100 percent.

“I talked to scouts last year before he made his decision to go back to school, which was the right decision, and they didn’t think he was in shape,” Zierlein said. “They thought he came in and didn’t think he was in shape, my guess is they were getting some of that from the guys in the (UGA) building.”

While he was initially blown away by Chubb’s film in 2014 and 2015, saying the Bulldog back was an equal to Todd Gurley, last year’s tape suggested otherwise to Zierlein.

“Last year, he wasn’t as quick through the hole. He wasn’t as decisive, you could tell the cuts weren’t as sharp as the year before,” Zierlein concluded. “He still has some power and contact balance, you can still see the running back he could be.”

Despite the issues plaguing Chubb in 2016, if he returns to his old form, Zierlein suggested Chubb would rise to the ranks of LSU’s Derrius Guice and Penn State’s Saquon Barkley as elite NFL prospects.