After an exciting week of practice, interviews and meetings, 2021 Reese’s Senior Bowl has come to an end.
The national team, coached by the Miami Dolphins, left with a 27 to 24 victory over the American team, which was coached by the Carolina Panthers. Both NFL teams took a first-hand look at some of the best prospects in the NFL’s 2021 Draft, and after seeing what many of them could do throughout the week, both teams presented a quality game.
This week was fun from both a football and a personal point of view. As I sit at my hotel in Mobile on the last night of my stay, looking forward to delving deeper into the coverage of the Bears draft in the coming weeks and months, here are my conclusions from this year’s Senior Bowl action.
Senior bowling notes
All in all, this year’s Senior Bowl quarterback group has done little to increase their draft stock.
The only exception would be Texas A&M’s Kellen Mond, who was named MVP of the game. He made 13 of 25 with 173 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions for the American team. Although his percentage of completion is not pretty, some of the pitches he made on Saturday were. He exhibited above-average speed behind his passes, as well as the touch and precision needed to hit receivers with ease and occasionally thread the needle to make difficult pitches through tight windows. If any quarterback won the game, it was Mond.
The rest of the group was generally more or less. Feleipe Franks, from Arkansas, started the game badly, hitting 4 in 9 for 56 yards in the first half and throwing several balls on the ground. He was able to gain strength in the fourth period, however, ending the game 9-16 with 122 yards and a touchdown for the victorious national team. His accuracy was inconsistent, but when he was in the game, he exhibited a strong arm and the ability to hit receivers with good positioning in contested situations.
Jamie Newman of Wake Forest had one of the best statistics lines of the day, going from 10 to 14 with 118 yards, a touchdown and an interception for the American team. Perhaps a more telling statistic is the four sacks he hit in the center on Saturday. He made some good plays, to be sure, but his presence in his pocket was not ideal and his accuracy proved somewhat inconsistent. Newman had a strong Day 1 of practice, but he seemed to calm down from there, and his game in the Senior Bowl itself didn’t do much to inspire confidence.
Sam Ehlinger of Texas and Ian Book of Notre Dame did not see as much playing time as the three quarterbacks mentioned above, but when they were on the field, none of them were able to stretch the field too far. Ehlinger had 42 yards and a touchdown in four submissions of 10 attempts, while Book had 48 yards and an interception when throwing 5 of 11.
Both offensive lines had problems with blocking the edge: of the total of six sacks that accumulated on Saturday, 5.5 could be counted for the edge rushers. Among those who fought in the offensive attack was Nebraska’s Brenden Jaimes, who suffered three penalties throughout the afternoon. The credit largely belongs to some of the interior attackers: David Moore of Grambling State, Creed Humphrey of Oklahoma and Robert Hainsey of Notre Dame were among the notable artists at first glance. North Dakota’s Dillon Radunz deserves credit, however, as he was rock solid on the left for the national team.
With some inconsistency along the offensive line, it is understandable that both teams were inefficient in directing the ball. The national team averaged 3.3 yards per load, while the American team only had 1.6 yards per load. While most defenders had little chance of making anything work, the big winner in the defense was North Carolina’s Michael Carter for the National Team. He finished with 60 running yards and a touchdown on eight loads and added 15 yards on two receptions. He was able to stand out using his agility and double threat ability as a runner and pass catcher.
Several wide receivers used this week’s practice to stand out, and while some of those highlights didn’t play on Saturday, other receivers took advantage and played incredibly well. Ten Fitzpatrick of Louisville had six 90-yard receptions for the national team, opening consistently and playing with good physicality on a tight cover. Demetric Felton from UCLA and Kenny Yeboah, Ole Miss’s tight end, were the recipients of his team’s two touchdowns. One receiver who struggled a bit was Arizona’s Frank Darby, who followed a solid week of practice with just one capture on six targets.
For the American team, Amari Rodgers of Clemson led with four receptions, turning them into 23 yards and a touchdown. He was athletic from the start and proved to be a reliable target for his defenders throughout the day. South Carolina’s Shi Smith was dynamic out of the slot on a 57-foot three-foot tour. Bowling Green’s Quintin Morris led all tight ends with three receptions and 52 yards, including a 35-yard reception that saw him pass a defender. He showed that he was totally athletic when his tape was shown. Josh Palmer, from Tennessee, scored a touchdown in a continuation of his strong week in the Senior Bowl, as well as Florida’s Trevon Grimes.
Many of the great plays from this year’s Senior Bowl came on the front-seven, particularly along the defensive line. On the national side, Patrick Jones of Pittsburgh was among the best players, getting a sack and a defender running off the edge, while playing a vital role in another sack. He looked explosive on the snap and proved to be a handful for the American team’s offensive line whenever he was on the field. Texas’ Ta’Quon Graham also had a bag full, and names like Notre Dame tandem Ade Ogundeji and Daelin Hayes, Ohio State Jonathon Cooper and UCLA’s Osa Odighizuwa came out with half-bags. Odighizuwa, Tarron Jackson of Coastal Carolina and Rashad Weaver of Pittsburgh were in a hurry, in addition to the aforementioned Jones.
The American defensive line had only two bags, but they still managed to generate a lot of pressure. Quincy Roche of Miami (FL) was a wild beast, scoring two quarterback runs and looking explosive on his first steps regularly. Cameron Sample de Tulane continued his strong week of training with an impressive Senior Bowl, leading his team with seven tackles and half a sack. He was athletic, powerful and polished in his races, consolidating himself as one of the biggest winners of the week. Janarius Robinson, from the state of Florida, led the team with 1.5 sacks and five tackles, looking like the physical specimen that was recorded.
With a lack of consistent tackle exercises throughout the practice week, Saturday was a chance for linebackers to show off their skills in a more realistic and game-like situation, and many of them did. Riley Cole, from southern Alabama, dominated the field of his college team, Hancock Whitney Stadium, ending with six tackles for the American team and looking instinctive and athletic on the race stand. He also noted a separation in coverage. Cole’s American teammate Jabril Cox of LSU launched a strong five-tackle attack that saw him play with impressive athleticism. KJ Britt de Auburn also had five tackles, adding a pass deflection and showing versatility in passing downs. Ohio State linebackers Justin Hilliard and Baron Browning were among the players on the National Team who looked good in their squad position.
As a result of the somewhat disappointing performance of the defender of both teams, the defenders had many opportunities to make some moves, and the moves they made. The highlight of the secondary was Benjamin St-Juste from Minnesota for the national team, as he had two deflections of the pass and was able to end the opponent in a heavy pressure limit function. Darren Hall of San Diego State and Keith Taylor of Washington also played well for the National Team, each recording pass deviations. Hall was versatile as a tackler and a reliable cover hand, while Taylor was a closing force for much of the game. Pittsburgh’s Damar Hamlin had the team’s only interception, making a good heads-up game catching a deflected pass by Taylor.
The American secondary was led by Syracuse’s Ifeatu Melifonwu, who followed in the footsteps of his older brother Obi not only playing in the Senior Bowl, but also dominating the stage. Young Melifonwu had two pass breaks on Saturday, and he was able to exhibit great fluidity and route recognition skills as a limit cornerback used mainly in the press. Bryan Mills, of Central North Carolina, had a game of ups and downs – as was the case with his week of practice – but his ups were impressive. He ended up with pass deviations and had some quality representatives on the cover.
There were no major problems for specialists from either team. Memphis’ Riley Patterson bet 2 on 2 on the field goals and 3 on 3 on the extra points for the national team, while Jose Borregales, from Miami (FL), had only the kickoff, as the American team bet on two. your touchdowns. Max Duffy, from Kentucky, hit a punt and dropped a punt on the 10-yard line for Americans, while James Smith, from Cincinnati, made a punt go to 52 yards. None of the long snapper had any difficulty taking it, either.
This year’s Senior Bowl proved to be more fun, and I’m glad I was able to go to Mobile to check out this year’s action for myself. We hope that this week will serve as the kick-off to an exciting pre-draft process.