Plenty of buzz from Senior Bowl week Game action capped a busy practice week; D-line prospects stood out
By Todd McShay
Scouts Inc.
Senior Bowl week has come and gone, a week during which four elite prospects separated from the pack and plenty of other players grabbed the attention of the NFL talent evaluators in attendance for the practice week in Mobile, Ala.
It wasn't all about practice, though. The game itself allowed prospects a chance to put a bow on strong practice showings or bounce back from subpar performances. Here's what I saw during game action, followed by the top 10 prospects who took part, five who took advantage of the week and five who missed opportunities to answer questions.
Russell Wilson has good tools, but his height will always be an issue.
• Wisconsin QB Russell Wilson struggled with accuracy inside the pocket during the game. Wilson was entirely too late on many throws and stared down his target on a first-quarter interception. I love his intelligence, athleticism and arm strength, and Wilson has big hands and slings the ball with a quick release.
However, his lack of height (5-foot-10⅝) is a major factor in his evaluation as an NFL prospect and Wilson has done little to ease concerns about his ability to throw accurately from inside the pocket.
• Arkansas WR Joe Adams showed great speed and run-after-catch ability, but he needs to learn to pluck the ball with his hands and secure it after the catch. Adams fumbled on the first drive of the game and let the ball into his body, as well.
He showed a nice dip move after the catch and ran hard to break through some feeble tackle attempts later in the game, and secured the ball better on that play. Adams also made a big catch over the middle at one point, showing good burst after the catch.
• Connecticut DT Kendall Reyes and Washington DT Alameda Ta'amu quietly dominated play along the interior. Reyes showed an impressive combination of initial quickness, power and awareness as both a run-stuffer and a pass-rusher. Ta'amu flashed two-gap power and the ability to disengage and disrupt in the backfield, and his effort and consistency were solid throughout the game.
• Boise State's Doug Martin and Cincinnati's Isaiah Pead were the standout running backs both during the week and during the game.
Pead used an impressive initial move to get outside at one point and shows good quickness and burst. He also had two long punt returns, and on the second showed good moves and burst down sidelines. Pead doesn't have elite elusiveness but is quick and shows good vision setting up blocks.
Martin, meanwhile, was a patient runner without dancing in the backfield. He ran hard, kept his legs churning and ran with good pad level. Martin twice did a nice job in pass protection, and also helped Arizona State WR Gerell Robinson on a long touchdown catch with some nice downfield blocking. He is not an elite runner, but with his burst, vision and quickness Martin was the most complete back in Mobile.
• Washington RB Chris Polk produced early in game, flashing a bit more in the game than he did during practice, but still showed a lack of burst and separation as a route-runner. Mississippi State RB Vick Ballard, on the other hand, ran hard throughout the game. Ballard lacks lateral agility but has outstanding straight-line burst for his size.
• A pair of linebackers also stood out during the game. Utah State's Bobby Wagner continued to impress, making a nice leaping interception, and made himself a lot of money with his overall performance during the week. Marshall OLB/DE Vinny Curry continued to show his motor, generating backside pressure on Oklahoma State QB Brandon Weeden and delivering a hit while Weeden was throwing the ball.
• Michigan State QB Kirk Cousins entered the game during a two-minute drill before halftime, making a nice throw on a deep crossing route at one point. However, he later missed a wide-open Robinson down the right sideline after North Alabama CB Janoris Jenkins bit on a double move.
• There was a surprising number of drops during the game. Wide receivers A.J. Jenkins (Illinois), Juron Criner (Arizona), Marvin Mcnutt (Iowa) and DeVier Posey (Ohio State) all dropped passes, though Criner did catch everything thrown his way during practice.
The connection between Criner and college teammate Nick Foles became a major part of the South offense in the second half. Foles was inconsistent with his mechanics but played well overall, and he showed the ability to move the offense and made some tough throws that required good timing and ball placement. Criner really got involved in the second half following his early drop. He showed the strong hands and savvy route-running we saw during practice, using savvy and size to help overcome his lack of suddenness and speed.
Already an elite prospect, Quinton Coples cemented his status at the Senior Bowl.
The players who had the best overall showings in Mobile:
1. North Carolina DE Quinton Coples
2. Ingram
3. Upshaw
4. Jenkins
5. Clemson DT Brandon Thompson
6. Georgia G Cordy Glenn
7. Ohio State OT Mike Adams
8. Notre Dame S Harrison Smith
9. Weeden
10. Curry
Five who took advantage
Quinton Coples
As the fifth overall prospect on our board Coples doesn't have far to climb, but his strong showing throughout the week helped to build some positive momentum following an underwhelming 2011 season at North Carolina. At 6-5¾ and 281 pounds, Coples exploded off the ball and showed above-average agility for his size throughout the week.
North Alabama DC Janoris Jenkins
Florida dismissed Jenkins in April 2011 due to off-field issues, and after transferring to North Alabama he went a year without facing top competition. However, it didn't take long to shake off the rust and show he is still a first-round talent on the field. Jenkins is a quick-twitch athlete who showed above-average instincts and closing speed throughout the week.
Louisiana-Lafayette DC Dwight Bentley
Ragin' Cajuns teammate Ladarius Green was the most notable Louisiana-Lafayette prospect entering the week, but the 5-9⅞, 176-pound cover corner quickly showed he has the mental toughness and natural ability to handle a much bigger stage than he played on in college. His aggressiveness and above-average route recognition skills in off-man coverage stood out, and Bentley has moved into the Day 2 conversation.
Marshall DE Vinny Curry
Curry did not take a play off on film, and that continued in Mobile. He doesn't have the bend and burst teams covet in edge rushers, but Curry's tenacity, violent hands and upper-body strength made life difficult for the North's offensive tackles -- including first-round talent Mike Adams (Ohio State) -- throughout the practice week.
Curry finished strong, recording two sacks in the game. The second one was particularly impressive, with Curry using his initial power to drive Florida State OT Zebrie Sanders back, keeping his balance when Georgia C Ben Jones came over to help Sanders, and keeping his eyes on the quarterback the entire time.
Utah State OLB Bobby Wagner
Wagner is another prospect from a relatively small FBS program who didn't wilt under the bright lights. At 6-foot and 241 pounds, he excelled at re-routing the North's tight ends at the line of scrimmage and showed good instincts in underneath coverage throughout the practice week.
His ability to set the edge and locate the ball as a run defender also helped his cause. Finally, Wagner showed the same motor and nose for the football during the game that he did during his collegiate career, finishing the game with a team-leading seven tackles and picking off a pass late in the first quarter.
Five who failed to capitalize
Brian Quick has potential, but he is a raw prospect who needs plenty of work. Appalachian State WR Brian Quick
We were looking forward to seeing Quick -- who has a lot of upside with his size (6-3½, 222), overall athletic ability and body control -- face a higher level of competition, and there was some talk that he could get himself solidly into the second-round conversation with a strong week.
However, he looked raw as a route-runner, rounding off too many cuts and showing he needs work on his tempo and setting up defenders. Quick also lacked overall suddenness, leading to questions about whether he can separate from underneath coverage at the next level, and even with a wide catching radius he dropped some passes he should have caught. He still has potential and didn't totally kill himself, but Quick now appears to be in the later portion of Day 2 (Rounds 2-3).
Furman CB Ryan Steed[/B
]Another FCS prospect who had a chance to prove himself against the big boys, Steed flashed toughness, instincts and the ability to recognize and anticipate routes when I saw him against Appalachian State during the season. He struggled to stay with Florida's receivers during the season, though, and the Senior Bowl offered a chance to prove he can hang with top-shelf competition.
Steed did show some quick-twitch, short-area athleticism during Senior Bowl week, but he lacked speed and range and was unable to hold up against the better receivers in attendance. His inability to recover is also a concern, and while Steed won't free fall down the board he did fail to cement himself as a solid Day 2 prospect.
Ohio State WR DeVier Posey
Posey was suspended for the first 10 games of the 2011 season for violating various NCAA rules, so he has only three game tapes from the season for scouts to evaluate. The Senior Bowl offered a chance to show he's still the same player who caught 60 passes for 828 yards and eight touchdowns in 2010. Posey did display some athleticism and the ability to run under the ball, but his inconsistent hands and body control were a big concern all week.
He simply dropped too many passes and allowed too many others into his body rather than snatching them with his hands. And his lack of focus in practice carried over to the game when Posey dropped a ball Boise State QB Kellen Moore put right on his hands on a skinny post and failed to finish a poorly executed route just before halftime, which resulted in an interception for Vanderbilt's Casey Hayward. Posey had a chance to get solidly back into the Day 2 conversation, but as it stands now he remains on the fringe.
Florida State OT Zebrie Sanders
A season-ending injury to teammate Andrew Datko pushed Sanders into duty at left tackle midway through the 2011 season, and he showed that there's a lot to like about his frame (6-54, 308), long arms (34⅝ inches) and smooth feet. A good week in Mobile would have given Sanders some momentum as he looks to work his way into the late first round, but he struggled early on.
In fairness, he was matched up in practice with three of the elite defenders on the 2012 board -- Coples, South Carolina's Melvin Ingram and Alabama's Courtney Upshaw -- but Sanders' lack of core strength was exposed as he struggled to sink and anchor against power pass-rush moves. Sanders did look better as the week progressed and did flash some good skills at times, but he now appears more likely to be a Day 2 pick.
Washington RB Chris Polk
Polk was a bit of a surprise participant after initially being considered an early-entry prospect. He missed all but the first two games of his freshman season in 2008 due to a shoulder injury, which would have qualified him for a medical redshirt, but Polk never filed the paperwork and his eligibility ran out after the 2011 season.
Either way, he was in the second-day mix following a strong season (1,488 yards, 12 TDs). Polk didn't do much to stand out, though, showing a concerning lack of burst and top-end speed. He caught the ball well, but showed little in the way of creating yards on his own. Polk simply wasn't as quick or fast as expected based on his film, and the NFL combine and pro day workouts now become even more important if he hopes to become a Day 2 pick.
Todd McShay is the Director of College Scouting for Scouts Inc. He has been evaluating prospects for the NFL draft since 1998. Scouts Inc.'s Steve Muench and Kevin Weidl also contributed to this story.