The 2022 Senior Bowl featured a ton of talent on both sides of the ball. Who won the week, and who left a bit to be desired.
The Senior Bowl is always a great way to kick off the NFL Draft process, and it was no different in 2022. A great week of practices commenced, with one of those indoors, as seems commonplace these days. The game is currently finishing up, and the 2022 NFL Draft “kickoff week” was, once again, a lot of fun.
Getting the Jets and Lions down there with their coaching staffs was excellent for the prospects, as they have a great group of coaches, ranging from upbeat and fun to extremely loud and intense. The National team, coached by the Jets, definitely got the offensive line and defensive line getting into it all week long.
We missed out on some great players participating down in Mobile, as Utah’s Devin Lloyd and Penn State’s Jahan Dotson both pulled out before the week began, and San Diego State’s Cameron Thomas missed the week due to injury.
As always, there were big winners from the week, and those who maybe disappointed relative to expectations. We’re diving in to all of that at every position from the Senior Bowl group for the 2022 NFL Draft right here. Let’s dive in!
2022 Senior Bowl: Quarterbacks
The best part of this quarterback class in the 2022 NFL Draft was that the Senior Bowl was set to be a proving grounds. Save for Matt Corral, the top quarterbacks in this year’s draft were all heading down to Mobile for the week. As it often does, many believed competition would elevate someone into the driver’s seat for QB1 in the 2022 NFL Draft.
All we really saw was more of the same from this class, with no one separating themself that much from the week. The biggest standout was Liberty’s Malik Willis, who made some excellent deep ball throws early in the week during receiver-corner one-on-ones. In the team drills, Willis made a couple great plays, including a rollout play to the left where he hit Greg Dulcich in stride in the rain. The ball jumps out of Willis’ hand, and he generated the most velocity of any quarterback during the week. From what many said, Willis also was very coachable throughout practices.
Sam Howell flashed the deep ball as well, and was solid throughout the week generating velocity. Bailey Zappe doesn’t have the arm, and made a couple questionable reads during 11-on-11, but his accuracy and touch was pretty good.
On the other side, the National group was a bit “meh” throughout the week. Kenny Pickett reportedly was great in interviews, but the lack of arm strength was evident during practices. Pushing the ball outside the numbers was a struggle for Pickett. Carson Strong got a lot better throughout the week in team/red zone drills, but the accuracy was very hit-or-miss. Desmond Ridder flashed the most of the group, hitting some very good throws over the middle on frontside or backside digs.
Willis probably won the week, and Pickett’s 2022 NFL Draft stock won’t take much of a hit, but the question marks are still there across the board.
2022 Senior Bowl: Running Backs
The Senior Bowl just isn’t the stage for running backs to truly shine. They have their competitive drills, but they don’t really get a chance to break tackles during practice week. Still, though, a few caught the national eye this week.
Standouts
Florida’s Dameon Pierce really showed out throughout the week. He competed especially hard in pass protection drills, staying strong with his hands and staying engaged throughout reps. His end-of-practice rep against D’Marco Jackson at the end of day two got the whole team excited. Even in team drills, Pierce showed off the tough running style and impressive lateral toolbox.
Brian Robinson Jr. also had some great reps in pass protection, with the most notable against Channing Tindall on day three that went viral. Elsewhere, Rachaad White made some great plays as a pass catcher, staying crisp through his breaks in drill against linebackers. Eli Pledger was a late add from Utah and he made some plays on day three of practice.
We’d be remiss not to mention Connor Heyward, who might have a fullback/h-back role with his receiving chops.
Struggled
It really isn’t a position to find those who struggled a lot this week, but D’Vonte Price really didn’t grab much attention all week. He struggled in pass pro and didn’t do much to stand out in the group. Zaquandre White is a player who thrives in space but dropped a few passes this week in drills.
2022 Senior Bowl: Wide Receivers
Standouts
The biggest standout for the week had to be North Dakota State’s Christian Watson. The small-school stud weighed in at 6’4″ and 211 pounds, and got to work against the defensive backs. Watson was dynamic and quick off the line of scrimmage with impressive burst into his stem. He stayed efficient on square-ins and made a couple great plays on a back shoulder throw and tiptoeing the sideline, plucking the ball out of the air. His lower body flexibility is impressive, and he was able to create windows through contact to create separation, which he also did with speed and route running. Day two feels like a given for him.
Rutgers’ Bo Melton was another big winner from the week of Senior Bowl practice. Melton had the best release game of anyone in Mobile, and stayed creative with a variety of them to keep defenders guessing. He showcased the straight line speed and acceleration to win deep, and attacked and secured the football, working back to the ball to make plays. He also was textbook in the release drills.
Khalil Shakir of Boise State was also excellent. He rarely ever tipped his hand off the line versus corners, and was great at creating separation with his flexibility, cuts, and strong short area acceleration. He was another with phenomenal releases all week to gain ground, and was very deceptive with his head and shoulders. He might not have the elite speed to be a deep threat, but he’s a reliable separator in the 2022 NFL Draft who can win in all three phases.
Calvin Austin III is all speed, all the time. His “easy speed” made life difficult for corners, as he blew by them in off coverage and competed well through contact late into his stem. He grew throughout the week in terms of route break efficiency, and he’s going to be a fun piece in an NFL offense.
Dontario Drummond was very fluid throughout the week in terms of separating, especially on out routes and comeback routes. He secured the football very well and should see a bit of a bump with his draft stock.
Jalen Tolbert did what he needed to do in terms of winning with his frame and using his hands, while also being dynamite at the catch point. His jab and speed releases were good and he has the acceleration to stack and win vertically.
Struggled
Velus Jones Jr. struggled early on with using his speed to create more route deception, leading to a lack of separation on underneath routes. It’s getting better for him, and using that speed to create more opportunities elsewhere will be important for him.
Braylon Sanders struggled mightily this week, ultimately due to a lot of hip stiffness. He struggled to create separation, and his route breaks were often inefficient.
Danny Gray entered with high hopes from many draft analysts, and while he showed off the start/stop quickness and ability to win deep, drops plagued him early in the week, and he missed practice later in the week as well.
Romeo Doubs didn’t struggle per se, but many were expecting more juice in terms of explosion and speed. He won some reps fighting through contact, but he wasn’t as twitchy to win in the 1v1s.
2022 Senior Bowl: Tight Ends
Standouts
Honestly, the tight end group at the Senior Bowl was so good that there really weren’t players who struggled that much. Most everyone showcased positives during the week.
Jake Ferguson did a lot well throughout the week, displaying the blocking excellent he had throughout his career at Wisconsin. What was most impressive was how easy it was for him to separate against safeties and linebackers with some twitch. His reliable hands will give any quarterback a great safety net in the NFL.
Trey McBride was described as stiff by some, which is a fair evaluation. It’ll be interesting to see his agility numbers at the combine. However, he did use his size and hands well to separate and made several excellent contested catches in team drills all week long.
Receiving tight ends Isaiah Likely and Greg Dulcich flashed the straight line speed in drills and team sessions, making some plays up the seam and on crossing routes.
Jeremy Ruckert showcased plenty early in the week, staying square with his routes and creating some separation. For those who were a bit skeptical, like this writer, his 2022 NFL Draft stock should get a boost.
Daniel Bellinger (San Diego State) had a phenomenal week. His timing to use his hands as an extra window-creation tool at the top of his routes was excellent, and he was perhaps the best blocker during the week. Excelling with his route running and hands is a big deal for his stock.
Struggled
Truthfully, there weren’t many who struggled during the week. Likely and Dulcich did in terms of blocking, but that’s not their game. Trae Barry was a late add who didn’t have a great practice on Thursday in terms of winning 1v1s.
2022 Senior Bowl: Offensive Linemen
Standouts
Boston College’s Zion Johnson was the big winner along the offensive line during Senior Bowl week. He had some tough battles with top defensive linemen, but he held up well. His grip strength, footwork, and anchor were as advertised. Even when his hands were a bit wide, the power in his lower half absorbed the rush well. He even took a lot of reps at center, and he flashed great reach blocking and second level blocking in team drills.
Dylan Parham got consistently better throughout the week. The versatile Memphis lineman got a huge early win, weighing in at 300 pounds. He thrived at center with reach blocks as well on team plays, and got constantly better versus the rush in one-on-ones with impressive strength and improving hands.
The Georgia guys, Justin Shaffer and Jamaree Salyer, looked in control all week and never seemed overpowered. They moved around all week, with Salyer even getting reps at center along with both guard positions. Their hands, sets, and technique were impressive: no real flash, just go to work and win.
LSU’s Ed Ingram was dynamite this week. His grip strength was great, his lateral movement skills were great (along with his footwork), and he recovered well against counters and stayed strong with his anchor. Technical prowess, along with athleticism, was there.
Chattanooga’s Cole Strange and North Dakota’s Matt Waletzko both continued to improve all week. Strange worked on the interior, and his hand placement got tighter, his anchor improved, and he got wins against a defensive lineman we’ll talk about shortly. Waletzko was great with his sets, carried rushers along the arc, and had a great snatch rep on the outside as well.
Tulsa’s Chris Paul looked good at both tackle and guard, firing off the ball well in run game drills and holding his own against pass rushers.
Struggled
It may be a bit shocking, but the tackle group was really the group that struggled this week. The competition was fierce, and it led to plenty of lost reps from the tackle group. Darian Kinnard was among the best at the Senior Bowl, but even he looked better inside.
Trevor Penning was a “winner” for a lot of analysts because of the demeanor he played with, but in all honestly, he struggled to anchor and gave up a lot of ground on every rep, getting walked back to the quarterback consistently.
Bernhard Raimann was another who many had high hopes for, and it’s safe to say the round one talk for him in the 2022 NFL Draft might be done. He consistently let defenders into his chest all week, losing leverage and couldn’t regain it. Raimann also had several reps where he bent at the waist and lost balance at the contact point.
Daniel Faalele has truly elite size, but he didn’t have the best week in 1v1 drills. He got pushed back with speed to power and lost balance on a couple of occasions, and had several instances of oversetting against speed rushers, offering up the inside like a king size Reese’s cup.
Max Mitchell has the athleticism and gets after it in the run game, but technically, as a pass protector, he needs work. This week cooled off his 2022 NFL Draft stock a little.
2022 Senior Bowl: Defensive Linemen
It was clear where the advantage was in the trenches at the Senior Bowl. The defensive line and edge rushers dominated a lot this week.
Standouts
Jermaine Johnson II was the biggest winner at the Senior Bowl by far. He dominated in every facet during practice week. In run game drills, Johnson’s quick, violent hands were crucial to shed blockers with utter disrespect. He made things difficult with his quickness and power. In rush drills, Johnson won with impressive hand usage, countering on several occasions to trim the edge or win back inside. His speed to power transition is devastating, as Kinnard found out day one.
Travis Jones was the other clear winner from the week at the Senior Bowl. He walked linemen back to the quarterback on nearly every rep he had, displaying great pad level, power, and a crushing initial strike with his hands. Jones was quick off the ball as well, displaying a lightning quick rip move as well to win early and late in reps.
Devonte Wyatt stood out throughout the week. Wyatt is lightning quick with his get off, and his change of direction skills almost measure up to edge rushers. He turned the corner on a couple occasions from the interior, using his acceleration in short areas and a good rip move.
Perrion Winfrey did similar things and got better as the week went on. His bull rush was particularly impressive, but his twitch and ability to cross the face of linemen is what got him a lot of wins this week. His pad level got better later in the week as well.
Neil Farrell Jr. and John Ridgeway were both power pushers all week long, walking linemen back and making things difficult on interior linemen trying to reach block. They stayed in control in run game drills, and flashed the bull rush in spades.
DeAngelo Malone has juice and put the 2022 NFL Draft blogosphere on notice. He rushed standing up most of the time, and his change of direction skills to win on an inside move is impressive. Malone can threaten the outside track and will be a target for 3-4 defenses.
Arnold Ebiketie plays with impressive athleticism and twitch, and is a player who is continuing to peak ahead of his NFL career. Jesse Luketa, Ebiketie’s teammate, is oozing athleticism, burst, and tools to work with either on the edge or in space.
Boye Mafe is similar, who actually flashed some good hand usage to trim the edge and get off blocks at contact, who also threatens the outside track and back inside.
As the week went on, Houston’s Logan Hall woke up. Hall’s twitch and quickness on the interior is impressive, and he can generate loads of power when he gets rolling. The interior linemen were tired of him by Senior Bowl week’s end.
Eric Johnson, the small-schooler from Missouri State, was improving all week long. He was extremely disruptive in team drills, getting into the backfield with his quicks. Those quicks worked their way into 1v1s as well, and that explosion turned to power that was tough to handle.
Sam Williams came in on Wednesday and turned in two good days of practice. His athleticism, pursuit, and strength was impressive. If off-the-field stuff clears, he can go pretty high.
Struggled
Virginia Tech’s Amare Barno struggled mightily all week long. In run game drills, he was consistently blown off the ball and almost off the screen on the film, and just didn’t generate much at all as a rusher. Having him drop into coverage would’ve helped his week more, but the Senior Bowl didn’t treat him well in terms of stock.
Haskell Garrett just didn’t really stand out as much as many thought he would. His counters weren’t great, and he didn’t push the pocket very much and kind of faded into the back with all the talent in Mobile this week.
Myjai Sanders didn’t really win the week much either, and while the flashes were there, practice week didn’t elevate his strengths, as bigger tackles got control of him early in reps.
2022 Senior Bowl: Linebackers
The linebacker position is another position where it’s hard to generate buzz at the Senior Bowl, which may have contributed to Lloyd deciding not to come for the week. They’re put on an island against better athletes, and don’t get a chance to hit at all.
Standouts
Darrian Beavers is an interesting 2022 NFL Draft prospect, mostly because he has the size and skill set to rush as well. Despite that, his awareness and cover skills were impressive, as he had a memorable first day rep against McBride in coverage.
Troy Andersen is the run and chase, WILL linebacker who should be on a lot of draft boards. His awareness in coverage in team drills and full offense drills were excellent, and made quarterbacks have to move to other reads late in their drops. He had some impressive coverage reps in 1v1s as well.
Aaron Hansford is a former wide receiver from Texas A&M who has the athleticism teams will love. He worked around tight ends in blocking drills and helped himself with coverage reps against running backs.
Struggled
Sterling Weatherford, a safety for Miami of Ohio in college, took a lot of reps at linebacker this week, and definitely looked out of his element. His feet got stuck in the mud in coverage a lot, and for someone who looks like a matchup-eraser, tight ends got the best of him throughout Senior Bowl week.
2022 Senior Bowl: Defensive Backs
Perhaps the toughest job of the week, the defensive backs covering wide receivers at the Senior Bowl was a mixed bag. There were impressive players throughout the week of practice, though.
Standouts
Baylor safety Jalen Pitre was a big winner this week. His quickness and transitions were impressive in the short area, and he was able to handle tight ends and get his hands into some throwing windows as well. He hung with bigger guys and had great zone awareness and motor in team drills.
Tariq Castro-Fields had a great week down here despite receiving little hype entering the week. He was patient, efficient with transitions, and stayed physical with receivers throughout their routes while sticking in the hip pocket vertically. Castro-Fields gave Alec Pierce headaches at the catch point and came down with a wild interception.
Bearcats corner and Thorpe Award-winner Coby Bryant was as advertised this week. His patience in coverage was impressive, as he never opened his hips too early. He stayed in good position throughout reps and had a few pass breakups during the week.
Small-schoolers showed up as well. Sam Houston State’s Zyon McCollum had some great reps in jump-press coverage, and his technique and abilities in man coverage stood out. Joshua Williams has the size, speed, and physicality to make some hey from Fayetteville State. He can be a press-man corner.
Roger McCreary drew some question marks early in Senior Bowl week, as his arms measured below 30 inches, which normally means slot corner. However, his technique in press-man was unmatched, and while the deep speed isn’t the best, teams shouldn’t be deterred with the skill set he provides in the 2022 NFL Draft.
Pitt defensive back Damarri Mathis did better as Senior Bowl week went on. His closing burst and recovery speed was there, and he made a couple nice plays on day three of practice.
Kerby Joseph is a very good player, as his Illinois tape indicates. He was opportunistic throughout the week, making a couple great interceptions happen, one in team drills and another in a 1v1.
Struggled
Derion Kendrick had a rough week down in Mobile, especially when lined up in press. He wasn’t quick to transition and opened his hips too quickly at times. He lunged a bit in press as well, and gave up big plays vertically.
Tycen Anderson was another small-school guy with size and athleticism, but never really got his footing during the week. Tight ends and running backs consistently beat him in 1v1s, and he looked a step slow most of the week.
Tariq Woolen made early headlines with his length and size, and while he showed promise, there’s still a learning curve with technique. The upside is there, but the week of practice was a little underwhelming for him.