Senior Bowl Prospects

The biggest college all-star game will be played this afternoon in Mobile, Alabama. The Senior Bowl was once considered the final call on the most recent college football season. Now, it's seen more as the start to the NFL Draft evaluation process. The Senior Bowl is bigger now than it's ever been because of the NFL potential of the prospects playing in the game. The funny thing about the game being bigger than it's ever been is the fact that the game is something of an afterthought. It's the week of practices leading up to the game that draws all the attention. This is the first chance for coaches and general managers to meet with the kids and see their technique, football talents, and practice habits up close. That's more important than the sometimes sloppy play of an all-star game. Most of the NFL people don't even stick around Mobile for the game.

Many of the draft people in the media have passed out their opinions, and will continue to do so, on the prospects playing in the Senior Bowl. Here's NFL.com Draft analyst Chad Reuter's top 15 players at the 2017 Senior Bowl.

1.   O.J. Howard, TE, Alabama
2.   Forrest Lamp, T/G, Western Kentucky
3.   Ryan Anderson, edge rusher, Alabama
4.   Dan Feeney, G, Indiana
5.   Antonio Garcia, T, Troy
6.   Desmond King, CB, Iowa
7.   Montravious Adams, DT, Auburn
8.   Tanoh Kpassagnon, DE, Villanova
9.   Carlos Watkins, DT, Clemson
10. Jourdan Lewis, CB, Michigan
11. Jordan Willis, DE, Kansas State
12. Justin Evans, S, Texas A&M
13. Cooper Kupp, WR, Eastern Washington
14. Dawaune Smoot, DE, Illinois
15. Gerald Everett, TE, South Alabama

I'm really looking forward to hearing the announcers handle (or mishandle) Tanoh Kpassagnon's name.

O.J. Howard was a prime prospect before the Senior Bowl practices. He might be a top-10 selection in the draft now.

One thing that stands out in Reuter's rankings is the number of players from small schools. Western Kentucky, Troy, Villanova, Eastern Washington, South Alabama. This is an opportunity for players from those schools to practice with and play against the "big boys." It's a huge opportunity for them.

As a Minnesota Vikings fan, I'm particularly interested in the offensive linemen. That's priority #'s 1-4 this offseason. The Vikings offensive line has to be fixed. Unfortunately, the 2017 offensive line class isn't considered a strong one. That's really only because there are no linemen considered top 5-10 picks. There are still some good linemen. The Vikings have no first round pick so they have to hope that some of those good linemen are still available in the middle of the second round. Forrest Lamp and Dan Feeney are a dream. Maybe Antonio Garcia is still available. Bucknell's Julie'n Davenport, Temple's Dion Dawkins, Western Michigan's Taylor Moton are some of the other top linemen taking part in the football festivities in Mobile. Each is from a small school and each is ready to make the leap to the NFL. Maybe they can make that leap in Minnesota. One can hope and dream at this point.

Here are the players recognized as the best of the Senior Bowl practices:

Top Practice Player: O.J. Howard, TE, Alabama
Quarterback: Davis Webb, Cal-Go Bears!
Running back: Jamaal Williams, BYU
Wide receiver: Cooper Kupp, Eastern Washington
Offensive line: Dion Dawkins, Temple
Defensive line: Dalvin Tomlinston, Alabama
Linebacker: Hasson Reddick
Defensive back: Rasul Douglas, West Virginia
Specialist: K, Memphis



Happy 57th Birthday Minnesota Vikings!!!