Top 12 standouts from Senior Bowl '19
One of my favorite weeks in the pre-draft process just passed, as more than 120 four-year college players traveled down to Mobile in order to compete one last time in pads before NFL teams decide to make them part of their organization.
While most of these players aren’t used to working together and it takes more than three days for quarterbacks and receivers to get into some rhythm for example, I think these matchups of the best versus the best can be very telling for scouts, especially since everything the prospects do from now on will be in shorts.
Therefore I want to point out the guys who "made some money”, meaning they got scouts talking and improved their draft stock with the way they performed in practice and/or the game.
#1 Deebo Samuel, WR, South Carolina
Deebo was sensational all week long, showing explosiveness, play strength and impeccable route acumen. I’ve loved this dude ever since I first saw him play for the Gamecocks and I had him as one of the top receivers heading into the 2018 season. While his collegiate career has been marked by injuries, I thought his potential when healthy was very high and he proved that down in Mobile.
Samuels roasted basically everybody in one-on-ones other than the Temple corner Rock Ya-Sin, who he went up against quite a bit for what I thought was the best battle throughout practice. However, he even beat that guy on multiple occasions, including a fade route where he used a little hop-step off the line and tremendous burst to create separation.
Moreover, the South Carolina standout displayed nice body control and adjustments to the ball in the air, making numerous big plays in one-on-ones and team drills. That included a spectacular leaping grab on a back-shoulder throw off a double-move in day two team drills.
He made fast guys look slow and he exposed longer corners with his short-area quickness, which includes making a couple of DBs look absolutely foolish on whip or pivot routes at the goal-line. Deebo showed he’s not just a premiere return-man and RAC-specialist, but he can get open against the best of them.