Senior Bowl Snippets

After last week's look at the East/West Shrine game,here is a few thoughts on some players that caught my eye from last weeks Senior Bowl in Mobile,Alabama....

Christian Ponder of Florida State was the game MVP and raised his stock in my eyes.
Ponder had a better arm and deep ball than I had thought and I liked his quick release.
Ponder was the biggest winner on the offensive side of the ball.

Jake Locker continues his fall with a less than strong outing.
Locker has never been the most accurate passer and I failed to see the prospects that others saw in Locker after the 2009 season.
Someone will take Locker in round one or two and likely regret it....

I really liked Derrick Locke,a running back from Kentucky.
Locke showed speed and quickness around the end and made people miss.
Locke has had injury issues,but all and all,I liked him a lot.

I also would find a spot for the smallish runner,Noel Devine of West Virginia.
Devine's small stature will likely keep him from being a full time back,but as a change of pace back Devine could be quite effective especially if he shows that he can catch the football out of the backfield.

Not too many receivers stood out.Dane Sanzenbacher was what he was as a Buckeye-a solid possession receiver and the Boise State pair of Titus Young and Austin Pettus could help some team,but not a great group of pass catchers.

On the defensive side of the football,a few players stood out,but one most of all.
Greg Jones of Michigan State is going to be a player that goes later than he should because he is a 5'11 linebacker and some team is going to take him in the second or third round.
That team will then have a hard hitting,run to the ball backer that doesn't take plays off,could be a three down player for the next ten to twelve years.
Yep,I would love to see Greg Jones in Cleveland.
Tell you what-Give me A.J.Green in round one and Greg Jones in round two and I'll be flexible on what the Browns take in rounds three-seven.

I liked the hard working Purdue defensive end Ryan Kerrigan throughout his career and I think Kerrigan is going to be a solid all around defensive end with better than expected pass rush ability.
Von Miller of Texas A&M looks like a good de/lb fit for a team running a 3-4 with speed off the edge.
I also liked what I saw from ends Jeremy Beal of Oklahoma and Sam Acho of Texas as second or third day picks with upside.
Christian Ballard of Iowa has been a favorite of mine for years and the defensive tackle had a strong Senior Bowl.
Ballard is the rarest of defensive lineman,a solid pass rusher from the interior line.

Much of the secondary didn't stand out to me except for one-corner Kendrick Burney of North Carolina.
Burney looks to be a better fit for a zone defense than in a man to man system,but his skills look strong if he goes to the right team...

One more college all-star game to go,the smaller NFLPA game that is on Friday,I think.
If I can,I'll try to watch and do another review....