Senior Bowl 2017 Practice Recap, Day 3: Keep an eye on LB Haason Reddick and DL Derek Rivers

In some uncharacteristically cold temperatures (50ish, I’m sorry I’m spoiled down here this week), the Senior Bowl teams went back at it for the 3rd and final day of practice here in Mobile.

The North Team started off the day again, and it was a pretty up-tempo practice to be honest. There was plenty to take in. Here are some notables:

North:

• Nate Peterman continues to be the best passer of the bunch. This is more of an indictment on the other two quarterbacks on the roster rather than an endorsement of Peterman, but he’s alright. Day 3 guy.
• Trent Taylor of Louisiana Tech is one of the most fun players to watch here this week. He’s 5’7” and around 170 pounds but he’s a jitterbug type slot receiver who’s tough to square up and hit hard and he’s nearly impossible, especially in these 1 on 1 situations in Mobile. This is from Tuesday’s practice.

• Zay Jones, WR from East Carolina looked pretty impressive today. Having caught 158 passes, no that’s not a typo, in 2016, Jones has had to fight through the “ECU WR” label. Their offense is pretty wide open, and manufactures catches for their top receiver. Justin Hardy has settled in with Atlanta, expect a similar timetable for Jones.
• Jeremy Sprinkle has continued to impress. He’s got the Belk issue, but scouts early this season said that he was better than Hunter Henry, who went early in 2016. Sprinkle won’t go that high, but he’s an in-line tight end who can block and catch. He’ll be sought after.
• West Virginia center Tyler Orlosky looked very good in both half-line run and 1 on 1s. He pancaked Larry Ogunjobi of Charlotte and was able to dominate 1 on 1s by getting his hands inside consistently. He made some money this week.
• Derek Rivers of Youngstown State was easily the all-star of the D-Line in 1 on 1s. He’s a Top 100 lock according to Justis Mosqueda. Rivers dominated FCS competition, and looked like he belonged in Mobile.
• Chris Wormley of Michigan has also looked rock solid throughout the week. He is what he is; he’s not a twitchy guy, but he’s thick as hell and a technician with his hands. Where he plays in the NFL is a bit unknown, at 6’5” 297, he can play anywhere from 1-3-5 techniques. That versatility will benefit him.
• Haason Reddick continues to dominate this Senior Bowl week. The EDGE rusher from Temple who is playing inside linebacker this week, is all over the place and is one of the best athletes and players here this week. He’s going to continue to rise throughout the draft process.
• Rasul Douglas has impressed this week, and looked good again today. One of the more vocal players in practice, he’s a lanky corner who has made himself some money this week.
• Obi Melifonwu of UConn has been one of the more outstanding players in Mobile this week, and he was good again today. The imposing safety has shown the ability to cover receivers in both man and zone coverage. He’s gonna fly up boards.

South:

• These quarterbacks, man. Josh Dobbs, who took a picture with our friend Charles yesterday, looked the best again today, but like Peterman, is more of an indictment of the other two than an endorsement for Dobbs.

• Jamaal Williams of BYU is good, man. He has torn up the South defense this week, and has shown he’s one of the better running backs here this week. He’d make a great Packer, I will admit.
• Chad Williams of Grambling is someone I literally knew nothing about before he got here this week, but he’s been impressive. He beat Corn Elder on a fade to the corner, but was unable to hold on. I’m excited to watch more of him.
• Ryan Switzer, future New England Patriot and deceptively fast and gritty white slot receiver has been uncoverable this week. He makes defensive backs look foolish. I don’t think he has great long speed, but his quickness is elite like Joe Flacco. He’s shown his collegiate resume is legit.
• Evan Engram might be the top route runner here, outside of Taylor and Switzer. His hands were a bit suspect this week, but if the Ole Miss H-Back/Flex Slot can have a solid showing on Saturday, he should go on Day 2. He’s gonna be a solid weapon for some team.
• Vanderbilt’s Will Holden was impressive in his only day here. An injury alternate, he went 3-3 in 1 on 1s, and along with Troy’s Antonio Garcia, pancaked Chattanooga’s Keionta Davis, to the ovation of both offensive and defensive lines. I’ll have to watch him more.
• Justin Senior of Mississippi State had a dreadful week, and although I doubt he’s a draftable prospect, he went 3-3 on 1 on 1s today, and we should be really cheering for all of these kids to perform well and go get their money.
• Ryan Anderson and Daeshon Hall both didn’t practice today, but they weren’t ruled out for the game on Saturday. Anderson, who had a thumb injury on Tuesday, practiced yesterday before sitting out today. Probably for the best, as he looked rough in coverage, and didn’t dominate 1 on 1s. Hall wasn’t announced as injured, but wasn’t at practice. /shrugs.
• Duke Riley continued to impress, and have great hair, today. He made a nice tackle on Jamaal Williams, showing some nice range. He’s a smaller guy, but he makes some nice sticks. It’ll be interesting to see what he runs.
• Damonte Kazee of San Diego State has continued to be hyper aggressive here, and it has worked. The former Aztec has been a terror for receivers all week.

The Senior Bowl game will be played on Saturday, January 28th, and broadcasted on the NFL Network.