MOBILE, Ala. — News, notes and observations from Wednesday's second day of practices at the Senior Bowl:
Wednesday’s American practice had two “end of the game” situational scenarios. It was good to see as both teams gave full effort. The defense (and Patriots coach DeMarcus Covington) won both.
Spoke to a couple of Alabama’s offensive players about Billy O’Brien. They were very complimentary of him. Some of the feedback was that he’s a good teacher, he’s consistent, has great energy, and is very clear about what is expected on a given play. TE Cameron Latu (who we’ve previewed several times) is a Day 3 target for the Patriots. He smiled and said he has a great personal relationship with him.
Luke Musgrave (Oregon St) is the best TE here. He’s big (6-foot-6, 255 pounds), athletic and uses that combination well. He made several plays in team sessions, including one catch in the two-minute drill where he jumped high to pull in the ball and get his feet in before he got out of bounds. I bet the Cowboys noticed.
Good day for several WRs. The best I had were Jayden Reed (Michigan St), Tank Dell (Houston), and Michael Wilson (Stanford). Wilson consistently won his reps. Dell is only 5-8, 163 but he plays bigger. He’s quick off the line, has good start/stop agility, and made several nice catches that required him to climb the ladder.
For those of you that want deep speed, WR Trey Palmer (Nebraska) could be interesting. He has an extra gear that he turned on to track a ball. I wonder what he’ll run at the Combine, but he hasn’t hit his ceiling yet.
The defensive lines had another strong day. Inside I gave the top marks to Keeanu Benton (Wisconsin), Zaach Pickens (South Carolina), Cam Young (Miss St).
I thought DE Keion White (Georgia Tech) was good. He wasn’t game-wrecking but there is a lot of clay to mold. He’s got great size, consistently plays hard, and was clocked running over 17 mph. That gets scouts excited.
This isn’t the best venue for LBs but the best I’ve seen so far are Dorian Williams (Tulane) and Daiyan Henley (Washington St). Williams might be the fastest backer here. Henley is the best in coverage
I thought the offensive tackles were generally up and down. Most showed a balance of good and bad, wins and losses. I attribute that to the fact that the National team had to alternate between LT and RT due to the absence of Dawand Jones. Jaelyn Duncan (Maryland), who I had as yesterday’s top tackle, had a stretch where he struggled. He bounced back which was nice to see. A tackle needs to be like a CB, short memory after a bad play.
John Michael-Schmitz (Minnesota) is the best center here, but Jake Andrews (Troy) is a late-round candidate. He plays with solid leverage (he told me he’s a former wrestler) and competes hard.
I thought CB Darius Rush (South Carolina) was good today. He’s big for a corner but has solid closing speed and anticipated routes well. His Gamecock teammate, Cam Smith, is a first-rounder but I’ve been impressed by Rush.
CB Kyu Blue (Stanford) looked better than yesterday and had a pick-six INT (and almost one more). He has some intriguing traits.
FS Christopher Smith II (Georgia) as good on pass coverage for the most part. He missed a run support tackle in the team session that would have gone for a TD, but he later knocked a helmet off (and he pulled up) in pass coverage. He’s on the smaller side for a safety but he’s instinctive.
I also thought safeties Daniel Scott (Cal) and Sydney Brown (Illinois) were good. Both had INTs.
Small school special alert! Marte Mapu (LB) from Sacramento State has popped a few times. He played safety at college but he’s probably more of an athletic backer at the next level. He played so well at the NFLPA Bowl (mostly free agents) that he got the call-up to the Senior Bowl when they had an opt-out. I thought he was physically coming forward and had solid zone principles in coverage.
I mentioned in Monday’s preview that CB Devon Witherspoon (Illinois) had pulled out of the game but that he was a name to remember for Round 1. Well, cats out of the bag. Daniel Jeremiah of the NFL Network (who I respect) released his top 50 prospects yesterday. Witherspoon was ranked #5 overall. I was hoping he’d fly under the radar a little more nationally.
THREE UP
WR Jayden Reed (Michigan St): Reed might be the fastest player here and he battles for the ball. I wrote about him last year and felt he would have been drafted if he declared. He didn’t break out this year, but I like him. Maybe the best performance amongst a strong day for the WRs.
LB Daiyan Henley (Washington St): Henley’s work in pass coverage was great and he showed good blitzing. He could be an athletic WILL or MIKE.
RB Tyjae Spears (Tulane): He got bundled in pass pro a couple of times, but he has great open field vision and instincts. He’s likely to be a 3rd down back at the next level. Ivan Pace Jr. (Cincinnati) one of the country’s leading tacklers (136 this year) said that Spears was the best player he faced this year. Even though he wasn’t big, he would look to deliver hits and didn’t shy from contact.
TWO DOWN
OT Dawand Jones (Ohio State): Only because we didn’t get a chance to see him today. He was a no-show for the media interviews this morning and then didn’t practice. Given the Patriots need at the position and his size I would have liked to have seen him again.
OT Wayna Morris (Oklahoma): Another rough day from the tackle. He did beat Derick Hall on two individual reps but then he was beat in the 2-minute drill session for a sack. He has largely struggled against the power of the edge rushers and will need some technique work.