A week of an NFL-style practice featuring some of the best seniors in football grants the selected few an opportunity to begin building their offseason draft resume. It's here where many are able to turn around a disappointing senior season, shake off a small school stigma, or reaffirm their college tape as the best in the country at their position. While it's important not to overemphasize a single week amongst years of football, there is money to be made and lost.
On the Rise:
Quinton Coples, DE/OLB, North Carolina - Coples entered Senior Bowl week attempting to erase questions over his motor and drop in production his senior season. He responded adequately by dominating the competition in practice and proceeding to flash as a disruptive force in Saturday's game. Coples has great size, strength, and get-off and displayed the ability to beat tackles inside and outside, giving them trouble with his length and hands. He's a lock for the top 10 and with the pass rush moves he showed this week, he very well should be.
Melvin Ingram, DE/OLB, South Carolina - Melvin Ingram also cashed in this week as many pass rushers often do during this time of year. Playing in space in the beloved one-on-one drills, Ingram was able to demonstrate his ability to beat tackles with outside and inside moves. At 6'2, 276, Ingram has the low center of gravity and understands how to get on a lineman and jack him up to the quarterback. He has good explosiveness and though it'll be interesting to see how he moves on his feet in shorts at the Combine, he looks like a great rush backer in the 34 front. His build seems like the type the Steelers often covet, but teams shouldn't be expecting to get him where there Steelers drafted Woodley and found Harrison. However, because of his size, he will interest teams of all schemes because of how he may be used as an end and inside pass rusher as well.
Courtney Upshaw, OLB, Alabama - Finishing the pass rushing trifecta on the South squad, Courtney Upshaw also impressed this week. He and Ingram are virtual clones in body type, but Upshaw has more experience on his feet. He has a thick build and a powerful punch on the edge. He will generally rush the pass and set the edge and would be a terrific asset at LOLB. He showed some great rips and swims this week beating tackles to the inside and playing within the scheme and assignment in the game. Though he didn't make as big a splash as Coples or Ingram, he's still very much a mid-round one player.
Mike Martin, DT, Michigan - Sticking on the defensive side, Mike Martin was flat out abusive this week in a way stout defensive tackles generally aren't. His 6'1, 307 pound frame will force teams to think of where they can use him and may even drop him far down the board for certain fronts, but his disruption this week was very evident. Martin is built like a bull with absurd upper body strength, but showed some explosiveness this week to pair it with. The highlights for many this week were his battles with Ohio State's Mike Brewster, but his performance in the game stood out every bit as much. He was difficult to move off the snap and found his way into the backfield many a time redirecting plays.
Brandon Weeden, QB, Oklahoma State - The soon-to-be 29 year old Brandon Weeden impressed this week in Mobile. His arm strength was very apparent as he cut through the wind in Wednesday's practice and consistently showed good ball placement. Though he didn't play too well in the game, it wasn't a quarterback-friendly game for any of the participants who suffered from dropped balls and immense pressure. On the whole, his accuracy and decision-making came out as positives. He handled the transition to under center better than most and seems more NFL-ready than the others here. Whether or not teams believe he's ready enough to contribute year one or two will determine how high he'll go in the draft.
Cordy Glenn, OL, Georgia - The massive 6'6, 346-pound Glenn had a very impressive showing this week in Mobile. For a player many are expecting to kick inside to guard on size alone, Glenn held his own even at left tackle this week. He carries his weight surprisingly well and handled edge rushers for the greater part of the week. If he can get his hands on a defender, the battle's won. Though he was beat by Vinny Curry once in the game, Glenn kept the door open for himself to play right tackle in the pros after winning far more match-ups than he lost.
Joe Adams, WR, Nebraska - After a fairly quiet week of practice, Adams exploded in the game as the game's leading receiver. He ran a couple nice routes, but primarily took advantage of soft coverage and poor tackling, turning quick hitches into extended gains with great YAC ability. If he can shore up his hands, he can have a similar impact at the next level as a playmaker.
http://www.footballsfuture.com/2012/seniorbowl.html
On the Rise:
Quinton Coples, DE/OLB, North Carolina - Coples entered Senior Bowl week attempting to erase questions over his motor and drop in production his senior season. He responded adequately by dominating the competition in practice and proceeding to flash as a disruptive force in Saturday's game. Coples has great size, strength, and get-off and displayed the ability to beat tackles inside and outside, giving them trouble with his length and hands. He's a lock for the top 10 and with the pass rush moves he showed this week, he very well should be.
Melvin Ingram, DE/OLB, South Carolina - Melvin Ingram also cashed in this week as many pass rushers often do during this time of year. Playing in space in the beloved one-on-one drills, Ingram was able to demonstrate his ability to beat tackles with outside and inside moves. At 6'2, 276, Ingram has the low center of gravity and understands how to get on a lineman and jack him up to the quarterback. He has good explosiveness and though it'll be interesting to see how he moves on his feet in shorts at the Combine, he looks like a great rush backer in the 34 front. His build seems like the type the Steelers often covet, but teams shouldn't be expecting to get him where there Steelers drafted Woodley and found Harrison. However, because of his size, he will interest teams of all schemes because of how he may be used as an end and inside pass rusher as well.
Courtney Upshaw, OLB, Alabama - Finishing the pass rushing trifecta on the South squad, Courtney Upshaw also impressed this week. He and Ingram are virtual clones in body type, but Upshaw has more experience on his feet. He has a thick build and a powerful punch on the edge. He will generally rush the pass and set the edge and would be a terrific asset at LOLB. He showed some great rips and swims this week beating tackles to the inside and playing within the scheme and assignment in the game. Though he didn't make as big a splash as Coples or Ingram, he's still very much a mid-round one player.
Mike Martin, DT, Michigan - Sticking on the defensive side, Mike Martin was flat out abusive this week in a way stout defensive tackles generally aren't. His 6'1, 307 pound frame will force teams to think of where they can use him and may even drop him far down the board for certain fronts, but his disruption this week was very evident. Martin is built like a bull with absurd upper body strength, but showed some explosiveness this week to pair it with. The highlights for many this week were his battles with Ohio State's Mike Brewster, but his performance in the game stood out every bit as much. He was difficult to move off the snap and found his way into the backfield many a time redirecting plays.
Brandon Weeden, QB, Oklahoma State - The soon-to-be 29 year old Brandon Weeden impressed this week in Mobile. His arm strength was very apparent as he cut through the wind in Wednesday's practice and consistently showed good ball placement. Though he didn't play too well in the game, it wasn't a quarterback-friendly game for any of the participants who suffered from dropped balls and immense pressure. On the whole, his accuracy and decision-making came out as positives. He handled the transition to under center better than most and seems more NFL-ready than the others here. Whether or not teams believe he's ready enough to contribute year one or two will determine how high he'll go in the draft.
Cordy Glenn, OL, Georgia - The massive 6'6, 346-pound Glenn had a very impressive showing this week in Mobile. For a player many are expecting to kick inside to guard on size alone, Glenn held his own even at left tackle this week. He carries his weight surprisingly well and handled edge rushers for the greater part of the week. If he can get his hands on a defender, the battle's won. Though he was beat by Vinny Curry once in the game, Glenn kept the door open for himself to play right tackle in the pros after winning far more match-ups than he lost.
Joe Adams, WR, Nebraska - After a fairly quiet week of practice, Adams exploded in the game as the game's leading receiver. He ran a couple nice routes, but primarily took advantage of soft coverage and poor tackling, turning quick hitches into extended gains with great YAC ability. If he can shore up his hands, he can have a similar impact at the next level as a playmaker.
http://www.footballsfuture.com/2012/seniorbowl.html