MOBILE, Ala. — News, notes, and observations from day four at the Senior Bowl:
1. Virginia defensive back Chris Cook is a tall, good-looking athlete who did a nice job Thursday staying with receivers during red-zone drills and quickly finding the football. However, he looks unnatural when asked to break down after a completion and simply lacks the type of fluidity needed to hold up in man coverage at the next level. Again, the guy looks more like a free safety prospect to me.
2. Another cornerback who has had an up and down week is Wake Forest cover man Brandon Ghee. When Ghee is able to get his hands on you, he does a nice job being physical and using his length to break up the pass. However, the more space he’s asked to play in the less comfortable looks and has a tendency to stop moving his feet when looking for the ball. Again, there’s a lot to like about the guy from a physical standpoint, but his lack of ideal awareness and inability to stay low and cleanly transition out of his back-pedal makes me think he’s more of a zone-type corner only.
3. One prospect who was really put into a tough spot this week was Youngstown State wide out Donald Jones. Jones is a tall, long-armed athlete who did do a nice job high-pointing the football at times Thursday. However, he’s a really leggy route runner who struggles maintaining his balanced when asked to change directions and doesn’t generate much acceleration out of his breaks. Now, I don’t want to kill the kid too much because he was a late roster addition and was thrown right into the fray, but he has had a really tough time adjusting to the level of competition this week.
4. Cincinnati wideout Mardy Gilyard again had a tough a tough time fighting through defenders during red-zone drills. He showcases good initial shiftiness off the line and is sudden out of his routes, but once a defender can get into his frame, he struggles to work himself free and find the football. The more I watch him, the more I see a slot guy only who simply won’t be able to create for himself on the outside vs. physical NFL cover men.
5. Another prospect who was put into a tough spot this week was San Jose State standout Justin Cole. Cole possesses a nice-sized frame and good power at the point of attack when asked to attack downhill, but he looks too stiff to play in space and projects more as a 3-4 outside linebacker or nickel rusher.
6. I’m willing to bet that if Mississippi State running back Anthony Dixon made a full-time transition to fullback in the NFL, he’d be able to pick it up with relative ease. However, I still see the guy as one of the nation’s top running backs and think he has the type of ability to be that “power back” in an NFL offense. Much like Shonn Greene was overlooked last year on draft day, I think the same could end up happening to Dixon, and it wouldn’t surprise me one bit to see him have the same type of impact.
7. UAB standout Joe Webb hasn’t been real impressive this week in his attempt to make the transition to wide receiver. He’s a tall, well-built athlete, but is a slow starter who gets too leggy as a route runner and struggles generating any kind of burst out of his breaks. I know he’s only been playing wide receiver for a limited amount of time and is expected to be raw as a route runner. However, I just don’t think he has the short-area quickness needed in order to generate separation vs. man coverage in the NFL.
8. Kentucky cornerback Trevard Lindley once again struggled in off-coverage Thursday, failing to recognize routes quickly and drive on the football. He’s a smooth athlete, however, he too often drifts in his back-pedal and has really looked uncomfortable in coverage all week.
9. One corner who has faired a little better than Lindley but has also struggled is South Florida’s Jerome Murphy. Murphy has a tendency to get too high and narrow with his footwork when asked to change directions and seems to simply glide in and out of his breaks instead of sharply driving on the ball. Plus, he really doesn’t look comfortable with his back to the ball and is more athlete than technically sound corner at this stage.
10. Finally, one of my favorite prospects here is Kentucky fullback John Conner, who looks capable of quickly developing into a starting-caliber lead blocker. He’s a good athlete for the position who blocks with leverage and has some real nasty to his game on contact. He isn’t a prospect who will be drafted high or get much recognition come April, but he’s the kind of guy who will play in the NFL for 10 years and always have a niche as a lead blocker.
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Wes, are trhe CBs in this draft as bad as you're making it seem? It seems like there may be only 4-5 potential starting CBs in the entire draft, which is really weak to me.
Wasn't Shonn Greene the 1st pick in the 3rd RD? Is that being overlooked?
Still wished Goodell left the 3rd RD as part of the 1st day of the Draft.
I know this is off subject but IMO Goodell ruined the Draft experience. No more enjoying weekends looking forward to soaking up the Draft?? Unbelievable. Plus the Draft starts on one side of the country (West Coast I believe) while you're still at work??? That's just weak.
@ Mike, the only team that didn't overlook Greene was the Jets. And the Jets traded up to go get him. Next back taken was Coffee with the 10th pick of the round. The Jets claimed to think he was first round talent. No one else thought so. They thought Knowshon, Donald Brown, Chris Wells, and LeSean McCoy were better backs. Overlooked? I would say, "Yes, the majority of teams overlooked him."
Greg - I agreed with the experts that Knowshon, Wells, & Brown were the cream of the RB's that year. Out of the projected mid-RD backs Shonn Greene was my favorite. Watching him run on film prior to the Draft what stood out to me was he had crisp cuts (= some elusiveness) along with he also loved to be physical & lay into would be tacklers if he wanted to go that route. You know that LT type capability when he was young & also in his prime. I saw Greene as having that mean streak which is an added plus for him as a prospect & player. What I missed after seeing him in the playoffs is his pads on FOOTBALL SPEED when he took it to the house in the open field. What a bonus! His listed 40 time before the Draft was average to below average if I remember right.
I saw him as the "top of the mid-RD backs" which is where he was picked. I wished he fell to our pick where we chose Coffee (Niners guy) among who was left over. Now if he ends up being the better back among the top 3 your Jets hit the jackpot. It just verifies what a crapshoot the Draft can be. Having some good luck also helps.
Webb is a tall, well-built athlete, but is a slow starter who gets too leggy as a route runner and struggles generating any kind of burst out of his breaks.
I watched the QB play closely and didn't really see anyone who is NFL-ready. LaFevour was the most impressive, but he looks really small. Tebow wasn't anywhere near the disaster some had predicted. He was raw but stuck a couple of throws in there. Didn't seem to have the velocity I expected though.
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Jan 29, 2010
04:23 PM
".. . Rushed 23 times for a career-best 179 yards, a 7.8-yard average, and a touchdown, to lead the Bulldogs to victory in Week 11 game against Arkansas . . . It was his ninth career 100-yard rushing performance in his career . . . With that rushing total, he moved to fourth in school history with 2,586 yards . . . His 63-yard touchdown run with 3:43 left in the third quarter widened State’s lead to 24-14 at the time . . . That dash was the longest TD dash of the year and the second-longest of his career . . . Also caught five passes for 32 yards and two more scores against the Razorbacks . . ."
This was the game I hoped would make everyone a believer in him. My Hogs were building momentum coming into the week and Dixon responds with a career game.