Senior Bowl Thread; Current News on Draft Prospects.............

[soulman]

" Analysis " of these types ( the Senior Bowl, the East-West Shrine game et all ) always cracks me up. These clowns are analyzing these guys based upon what they see in one day or one week's worth of practice playing with unfamiliar coaches and systems. They see a guy overextend on a block or two and suddenly the player " shows a tendency to lunge or overextend or doesn't anchor well " and blah blah blah. How much game tape ( the TRUE measuring stick ) do these guys watch ? Give me football players who perform in games when it matters - not guys who "look the part" but suck when the lights come on .

Much of this stuff is superficial garbage.

Maybe so but the coaches and scouts who are there get what they want from it. One thing it would tell me as a scout is how quickly the guy might pick up a new system. They run pro style offenses coached by NFL coaches so these guys are no longer in their comfort zones playing with guys they played with for two or three years.

With some of these guys, like Quick, they get to see how a guy from a smaller school fares playing against better competition. The combine tells the teams a lot about a guys measurable but these all star games tell them a lot about how they actually play. Guys gain or lose ground this week just as they do after the combine.

What's bad for us as readers is that the same guy who stuggled on day two out of pads becomes a monster on day three once the pads go on and we may not read about that. Day three is where I think you find out who's a player and who's an athlete.

[soulman]

Mike Adams looks really athletic and smooth in his movement.

I really think that Adams could step in at LT and combine with Carimi to give the Bears a really talented set of bookends that are also huge.

LT: Adams
LG: Williams/Louis
C: Garza
RG: Spencer
RT: Carimi

He should be there when we pick and right now he grades out as a guy who could compete with Webb pretty well.

[soulman]

Senior Bowl: South Practice Report Day 2

Our first look at the South squad… Wes Bunting



January 24, 2012 Print This
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Practice Notes from the South…

Vanderbilt corner Casey Hayward made himself some money with his performance Tuesday. He’s a nice sized defensive back with balanced footwork, a good feel in coverage and can cleanly turn to track the football. He’s a tough guy to separate from, exhibits “plus” ball skills and possesses an ideal skill set of a cover two type corner in the NFL.
ICONCoples looks the part and has the talent to back it up.


Another corner who impressed today was Georgia’s Brandon Boykin. The undersized defensive back competed all practice long, showcasing a burst out of his breaks and good speed vertically down the field. He does have a tendency to get a bit grabby at times when asked to re-direct. However, he did a nice job staying in receivers back pockets throughout and looks like a “plus” slot guy at the next level.

I have to admit, I came away unimpressed with the performance of North Carolina wide out Dwight Jones. Jones was simply unable to get off press coverage throughout the day. He didn’t look real sudden off the line and had a tough time getting up to speed through contact. Jones didn’t see a ton of press-man this past year, but because of his skill set I thought it was a nuance of the game he likely couple develop in. However, watching him get re-routed with ease off the line Tuesday was a real downer for him.

On the other hand, UNC DE Quinton Coples not only looks the part, but was physical on contact as a pass rusher, used his length well to fend off blocks and could either overpower on contact or cleanly slide step blocks inside. Plus, because of his lower body length he has deceptive speed when asked to run the corner. And despite getting a bit upright, he was still able to fend off blockers on contact off the edge routinely. Overall, there’s simply too much talent for this guy not to go in the top 10/15 picks.

South Carolina pass rusher Melvin Ingram was also a bear to block off the edge today. He flashed natural change of direction skills on his spin move, was sudden on his inside club and even dropped his pad level down around the edge. He can reach the pass rusher in a number of ways and because of the lacking talent in this year’s class; he should be a first round selection.

Anchor strength is a must at the offensive tackle position, because if you can’t hold up on contact you’ll make every linemen you go against look like a good pass rusher. And that has been the case for Florida State OT Zebrie Sanders. He’s a long kid with solid athleticism, but was routinely overwhelmed today and would get overextend into contact in order to try to make up for his lacking base, causing him to whiff into blocks. Needs to continue to get stronger to have a chance at starting in the NFL.

Arizona WR Juron Criner made a pair of impressive catches Tuesday, plucking the football with one hand even on one occasion with a corner draped all over him. However, the big thing with Criner is that he’s a guy who doesn’t have much burst to his game, isn’t clean out of his breaks and isn’t ever going to separate a ton vs. man coverage in the NFL. Looks more like a big inside guy to me.

Finally, I’m starting to warm up on Georgia OL Cordy Glenn. He played inside at guard today and showcased some natural footwork through contact and used his long arms and strong hands to stick. He still got himself into some trouble on the edge when trying to anchor, as he would get his weight out over his knees and fall off the block. However, looks like a guard capable of starting at the next level early on.


Follow me on twitter: @WesBunting

[soulman]

Couple of guys here to watch who should also be high on the Bears list.

Coples looks a lot like Peppers doesn't he? Notice he wears the same number? I guess we can guess who he patterns himself after. Ingram is the other guy. Smaller and maybe more of a pure rush guy like Osi Umeyiora. One of these guys should still be around at #19.

Another Vandy guy with a description Lovie should like. "Plus ball skills" "Ideal Cover-2 CB". We do pretty well with these Vanderbilt guys too. This guy may be our next LCB if we can nab him in the 2nd round.

Dwight Jones was a WR prospect whose been mentioned but his game wasn't very game today.

[soulman]

The Senior Bowl experience

It's quite a show in Mobile, Ala. Greg Gabriel



Print ThisJanuary 24, 2012, 05:00 PM EST
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I’ve been coming to the Senior Bowl every year since January 1985. And while there have been changes, it still remains quite the same experience for the last 28 years.


The Senior Bowl is not just a college All-Star game; it’s an unofficial NFL convention. Every year there are perhaps a thousand NFL personnel here in Mobile, Alabama. Between Sunday and Wednesday of Senior Bowl week a fan can find just about every coach, General Manager and scout from each NFL club here. You can also find hundreds of other coaches and scouts who may be out of work looking for a job in the NFL. At practice, the sidelines are loaded with people not only watching the players go through drills, but also people looking to find a friend or acquaintance who can introduce them to a club decision maker who may be willing to grant an interview.

Why is the busy time between Sunday and Wednesday? The answer to that question is the players arrive on Sunday and so do the scouts. The heavy practices are Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. On Thursday while there may be a few scouts or coaches attending practice, it’s not nearly as many as earlier in the week because the practices aren’t as intense.
ICONThe staffs of the Washington Redskins and the Minnesota Vikings are coaching the two teams this year at the Senior Bowl.


The Senior Bowl is unique in that the players are coached by complete NFL staffs. This year the coaching staffs of the Washington Redskins and the Minnesota Vikings are coaching the two teams. This can be an excellent benefit for those clubs because of all the extra time the coaches get to spend with the players, not only on the practice field but in the meeting rooms. The practices at the Senior Bowl are more intense than at other All-Star games. Because they are run by NFL coaches and there are so many scouts and coaches here the practices can become very competitive. It’s not unusual to see a player who may have had a consensus 5th round grade going into the week move up to say the 2nd round.


The week begins on Sunday when the players and scouts get into town. Scouts from most clubs can be seen in the lobby of the player’s hotel trying to round up players of interest for interviews and perhaps psychological testing. This is important for both the players and the clubs because with every player you get to spend time with, that’s one less player you have to interview at the combine. The interview process at All-Star games like the Senior Bowl can be more complex than at the Combine. The reason for this is when you interview at the combine, you are limited to 60 interviews and the maximum length of time you have to interview is 15 minutes. There are no time constraints at the Senior Bowl, so if you need to spend 30 -40 minutes talking to a prospect you can.


When I was with the Bears, we used to have a suite where we would interview players. We would also bring one of our video personnel to tape the interviews. The reason for this was because if a coach or scout wanted to review the interview at a later time we had the tape to go to. There were many times when I would watch interviews back to back just to compare different players to each other. It’s always good to be able to review.

In all the years I’ve been coming here, the main change is the media presence at the event. Ten to 15 years ago the amount of national media here was minimal. While there are many NFL people in Mobile, the media didn’t know that it was a great source for “news.” That has changed.


ESPN, the NFL Network as well as most newspapers from NFL cities have people here covering the week. With football websites becoming more popular, writers from not only the NFP but many other sites are here also. You will also find “NFL Insiders” such as Jay Glazer of Fox and Charlie Casserly of CBS here trying to spend time with the decision makers and get what Glazer refers to as “scoopage.” It’s not uncommon to find a score of these people having lunch at Wintzell’s, the famous Mobile Oyster House early in the week. If you want a great bowl of gumbo go to Wintzell’s. It’s a guarantee you won’t be disappointed.


The Senior Bowl is a fun week and a “must” for the serious fan to do once in his or her lifetime. There isn’t another week like it on the NFL calendar.

[short faced bear]

I would like to see a LT drafted first but if Tice is stuck on his Webb project would the new GM draft one anyway? I wish someone would ask Tice about Webb's future at LT and the new GM if he would rock the boat right away and draft a LT if there were objections.

[soulman]

There's no longer any downplaying of the importance of this weeks practices, interviews and the game itself. As Greg Gabriel points out teams have much greater access to the players here than they do at the Combine. There are no limitations on the number of players you can interview or the length of those interviews as their is at the Combine.

The teams are each coached by an NFL HC and his staff and the teams play NFL style offenses and defenses. Where the Combine tends to test players measurable's the Senior Bowl test how well they can learn their role and play the game. Players grades can move up or down significantly as a result of the practice and play this week.

There's almost as much press and media attention this week as there is at the Combine. Out of all of the college All Star Games this one is the biggie.

[soulman]

I would like to see a LT drafted first but if Tice is stuck on his Webb project would the new GM draft one anyway? I wish someone would ask Tice about Webb's future at LT and the new GM if he would rock the boat right away and draft a LT if there were objections.

Well we don't know exactly how we'll come out of free agency this year but I'm guessing that if we can get help there at WR and in the defensive backfield the first round pick will either be a LT or a DE. In the second round I'd guess WR or CB and in the third a SS and whichever of the two, WR or CB we didn't get in round two. At least I hope it goes something like that.

[lklrlolnlilklsox]

" Analysis " of these types ( the Senior Bowl, the East-West Shrine game et all ) always cracks me up. These clowns are analyzing these guys based upon what they see in one day or one week's worth of practice playing with unfamiliar coaches and systems. They see a guy overextend on a block or two and suddenly the player " shows a tendency to lunge or overextend or doesn't anchor well " and blah blah blah. How much game tape ( the TRUE measuring stick ) do these guys watch ? Give me football players who perform in games when it matters - not guys who "look the part" but suck when the lights come on .

Much of this stuff is superficial garbage.

Bullshit. The Senior Bowl pits the best seniors in the country against each other, one-on-one and you get to see how their skills, ability, polishing, and general acumen for football measures up to those of their best peers. When there's 11 guys on the field, it's easy for tape to say, "Well guy A was open all day on guy B," but there's always the teams scheme and game plan which casts a cloud over the tape that can really hide a players true ability or lack thereof. It takes guys out of their system, out of their comfort zone and into drills, practice and game situations that they can't hide in.

Then there's always the small-school guys like DRC. The guy was talked about going into it a little bit. He was a nice upside prospect who people thought was worth a mid-rounder on a boom-or-bust low cost pick. Then he shows up at the SB and tears shit up against the big boys. He absolutely played his way into not only the first round, but the MID first round and has proved every bit a good selection - all trades aside. Without that game, he DOES NOT go in the first round based on his outstanding measurables alone because teams question his ability to play against a level competition.

This week means a lot to kids, and there wouldn't be a huge contingency of scouts there if it was all superficial garbage.

[lklrlolnlilklsox]

Maybe a couple of guys above who the Bears may be keeping an eye on.

WR's McNutt and Jones may be guys the Bears would be looking at as 2nd round picks.

Dwight's got midget hands. Now I know where all the dropped balls come from. McNutt, on the other hand, has some legit mitts and that just makes my already huge confidence in him all the greater.

Those arms on McCants put him back just behind Massie on my OT board.

Bergstrom has been low-key for some time, and I hope he has a good week and shows he has the feet for LT.

Cordy, Cordy Cordy. Jesus that kid is a beast. He and Osemele are a whole lot of beef, and two really easy to like OG prospects.