How did this happen? The answer is something Snell is telling teams like the Bears ahead of the NFL Draft.
"You can't measure a person's heart," Snell said. "When they put the three stars on me when I first came out of high school, I eventually was freshman All-American my first year and a bunch of five-stars weren't getting any playing time. There's things behind football that you can't measure."
Snell left Kentucky after three seasons having broken or tied 14 school records. He projects as a Day 2 selection and is perhaps the best attainable option available to the Bears, whose draft begins in the third round with the 87th overall pick.
The Bears will be looking to draft a running back, having already declared their interest in in finding another backfield fit with the intrigue they expressed in potentially signing Kareem Hunt. That signaled the potential to move on from Jordan Howard, who's entering a contract season.
"When you're dealing with running backs for us in this offense, you want to be able to have a guy that has really good vision that can make guys miss," Bears coach Matt Nagy said at the NFL Combine. "At the same time, there's that balance of being a hybrid, being able to make things happen in the pass game too, but yet to where you're not one-dimensional. And that's not easy."
Snell believes he can be that player. He rushed for 3,871 yards and 48 touchdowns in three years and feels he can contribute as a pass-catching target too. The Bears must explore whether Snell is an upgrade over Howard.
"I bring a lot of power to the game, a lot of smart decisions," Snell said. "When you need me at critical times, I make things happen. I usually make something out of nothing. I just see myself as a productive player, a real passionate player."
The Bears seem likely to draft a running back, regardless of whether Howard is part of the team in 2019. But sooner or later, the time will come to address his future in Chicago.
Howard rushed for a career-low 935 yards on 3.7 yards per carry in 2018 as the Bears struggled to establish him in Nagy's offense. With the team using Tarik Cohen in a versatile role and wary of not overworking him, it wants a three-down back capable of running routes to rely on. That doesn't appear to be Howard.
Fortunately for the Bears, this draft is filled with several enticing running back options in the middle rounds.
"I want to play for a team that's going to utilize me, a team that knows my worth," Snell said. "I want to show them that I'm going to give 110 percent every play. I'm bringing my passion, my drive to the team. I'm going to help as much as I can. That's what I got."