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January 24, 2006
Senior Bowl - Tuesday North Practice
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Scott Wright
President, NFL Draft Countdown
After a relatively small crowd yesterday the stands were noticeably more full today with a lot of scouts and pro personnel in attendance. One guy who I have not been as impressed with as I thought I would be is Vandy's Jay Cutler. Don't get me wrong because he hasn't been bad, but I am not sure I see a Top 10 overall pick there. He has a cannon for an arm but he might have been trying to show that off too much today and he was off on some of his passes. Also, his backdrop looks kind of choppy and he carries the ball a little low. The guy who I did like is Clemson's Charlie Whitehurst, who looked sharp, throws a good deep ball and has enough arm to hit the deep out. He will be a great value for someone if he is still around in the 3rd to 4th round area. Penn State's Michael Robinson was a little better today but is still clearly out of his league as a quarterback with this group. At running back Jerome Harrison of Washington St. was the most impressive and looked good while Terrence Whitehead of Oregon broke some tackles and had a nice run. It was a terrible day for the wideouts as nobody could catch a cold, with Jason Avant of Michigan looking particularly bad as he wasn't able to separate and dropped a bunch of passes. Demetrius Williams of Oregon had some drops as well. Notre Dame's Maurice Stovall probably looked the best of the bunch but that isn't saying much and even he bobbled and dropped a ball. After showing off his blocking skills yesterday Dominique Byrd of USC had a couple of catches and displayed good hands while Colorado's Joe Klopfenstein had another catch about 20 yards down the field. Along the offensive line D'Brickashaw Ferguson continues to impress while Ryan O'Callaghan of Cal and Daryn Colledge of Boise St. were both excellent again as well. Southern Cal's Deuce Lutui struggled mightily while Mark Setterstrom of Minnesota bounced back with a good day.
On defense Gabe Watson of Michigan is still a stud and although he isn't much of a pass rusher he gets great push and penetration versus the run. If I am a 3-4 team in need of a nose tackle he is at or near the top of my list because he could be outstanding in that role. Boston College's Mathias Kiwanuka battled Ferguson and Colledge a lot but I have noticed he really lacks a variety of pass rush moves and is basically an outside speed rusher. He needs to diversify if he wants to be a star at the pro level because what he does now just will not get the job done on a consistent basis. On the injury front, Jonathan Lewis of Virginia Tech sat out practice and was in shorts after getting nicked up yesterday. At linebacker Chad Greenway of Iowa continued to be a leader and coach on the field while looking natural in coverage and Brian Iwuh of Colorado impressed and displayed great range.
I spent a lot of time watching the defensive backs today and came away impressed as this is a solid group from top to bottom. Will Blackmon of B.C. looked natural, quick and smooth in drills and hasn't missed a beat while Tye Hill of Clemson showed of his speed and athleticism to go along with a physical and aggressive approach. Darrell Hunter of Miami (OH) had a great day as well, showing the quick feet and good ball skills that is drawing him a lot of interest from scouts. A guy who surprised me with how well he played is David Pittman of Northwestern St. (LA) and he could be one of the top sleepers in this draft when all is said and done. At safety Anthony Smith of Syracuse finished well and flashed top intangibles while Jahmile Addae picked off a Charlie Whitehurst pass near the end of practice.
As I said there were a lot of big names around the field today, including Charley Casserly, Nick Saban, Romeo Crennel, Jon Gruden (who took a special interest in the defensive backs) and Andy Reid just to name a few. Once again scouts scampered onto the field following practice to talk with prospects and here is a rundown of who I saw each team with: San Diego had a major presence and they were seen talking to Joe Klopfenstein, Martin Nance, Davin Joseph, and Charles Spencer. The Dallas Cowboys gave a lot of attention to Gabe Watson while Miami chatted up Charlie Whitehurst. Cleveland spoke with Maurice Stovall, Abdul Hodge, Dominique Byrd, Babatunde Oshinowo, Davin Joseph, Victor Adeyanju, and Demetrius Williams. The Jets were seen with Mathias Kiwanuka and Michael Robinson, the Giants with Chad Greenway, the Redskins with Dominique Byrd and the Eagles with Tye Hill, David Pittman, Mike Bell, and Michael Robinson. Meanwhile Kansas City showed interest in Gabe Watson, Davin Joseph, Mark Setterstrom, Anwar Phillips, Michael Robinson, and Deuce Lutui. Cincinnati was also making the rounds and was seen with Brian Iwuh, Jon Alston, Davin Joseph, Darryl Tapp and Nick Mangold. D'Brickashaw Ferguson was chatted up by scouts from Carolina and Cleveland while Denver and the Panthers talked with Cedric Humes. Carolina was also extremely active and others they were seen with include Maurice Stovall, Jason Avant, Derek Hagan, and Terrence Whitehead. Finally, Jacksonville had two scouts with Anthony Smith, Baltimore was with D'Qwell Jackson and Lawrence Vickers, and both Tennessee and Oakland spoke with Darrell Hunter. As you can see it was real active! Overall it was a good day and this squad got a lot more exposure and attention than they did on Monday.
Day 2 Senior Bowl North Practice....
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