2019 Senior Bowl: Stock up, stock down after first practice

The Senior Bowl practices never disappoint, and yesterday was no different. Who helped themselves and who hurt themselves on the first day of practice?

The Senior Bowl is perhaps my favorite event of NFL Draft season. The best seniors in the country come together in one place to try and raise their stock. From one-on-ones, to system installs, to full 11-on-11 drills, the practices are everything you could want to see how players perform is in one place.

Plenty of storylines headlined the week coming in. The quarterbacks were under the microscope as the 2019 class was considered one of the weakest in several years.

Wide receiver and defensive line look like the deeper positions in the draft this year, and the Senior Bowl features plenty of guys who can elevate themselves.

After just one day of practice, there was a lot to unpack. Plenty of players stood out, for both good and bad reasons. Let’s take a look at some players who helped their stock on Tuesday and some who hurt their stock.

Stock Up: Defensive Linemen

As if the defensive line class couldn’t get any better that what it’s already being heralded as…A record number of underclassmen declared this year, plenty of which were defensive linemen.

Down in Mobile, the strengths mirrored those of this year’s class. Later in the afternoon on Monday, the North team showed out on the defensive line.

The big names that dominated from jump? Khalen Saunders of Western Illinois and Renell Wren of Arizona State.

Saunders had a very quick get off at the line of scrimmage and used his leverage and power to push offensive linemen off balance.

Wren got up and shredded interior linemen with his quickness and hand usage. Both guys, with a strong finish to their week, should be locked in to day two, and quite possibly the top half of it.

Stock Down: South Quarterbacks

The quarterbacks always get the attention down in Mobile, no matter the state of the class. There was plenty of intrigue with the south group, especially because of the potential with Will Grier and Tyree Jackson.

However, it was not an auspicious start for the four on the South. Jarrett Stidham was probably the best of the bunch Tuesday, but he showed inconsistencies with his accuracy in 11-on-11 drills.

Gardner Minshew made a couple nice throws in one-on-ones down the sideline, but his highlight reel ended there.

Will Grier looked completely off, missing guys constantly at all levels of the field. Lastly, Tyree Jackson looks like a major project. His dropback and delivery need work.

Stock Up: South Wide Receivers

Despite the quarterback play for the south team in day one, the receivers put together quite a show. The big name to watch this week, South Carolina wide receiver Deebo Samuel, had a fantastic day.

He had an extremely quick release in one-on-ones and did beat corners deep as well.

Another player with a big day was West Virginia’s David Sills. Sills came in under the radar, mostly because analysts were worried he would only be a red zone target. He came in with a great play down the sideline by leaning into the defensive back and creating some space to make the catch.

If he can be technical winning down the field, he will find an NFL home.

Let’s also not forget about Hunter Renfrow, who came out and dominated as a route runner despite a disappointing weigh-in.

Stock Down: North Wide Receivers

It’s almost like the teams are balanced or something. The wide receivers on the North team weren’t very impressive.

Terry McLaurin finished the day as a winner, but even he got off to a shaky start with some drops.

Drops were the name of the game with this group, and everyone struggled, even the bigger receivers like Keelan Doss, Jakobi Meyers, and Jaylen Smith. This group lacked a lot of technical route running skills and found themselves losing a lot of reps.

Stock Up: Mississippi State

Three Mississippi State players caught my eye on the first day of practices. The biggest name here, edge defender Montez Sweat, put together a fantastic day. He got on the field and looked massive at his 6’6″ height, and he put on some more muscle during the year.

Many believed he was a solid pass rusher, but not a guaranteed first round prospect. That changed in a matter of minutes.

Sweat came out and buried offensive linemen with his speed and strength.

Shrine Game call-up Daylon Mack looked very good in his first practice, pushing the pocket back in one-on-ones.

Another Mississippi State player who did well was offensive lineman Elgton Jenkins. He did well at the point of attack and anchored very well against interior defensive linemen he faced in one-on-ones.