• Arizona State offensive lineman impresses: Max Iheanachor looked like a top 50 pick on the offensive line at the 2026 Panini Senior Bowl.
• Notre Dame wide receiver is rising up draft boards: Malachi Fields showcased NFL size with plus athleticism to get his name into the early Day 2 conversation.
• Everything you need to prepare for draft season: The PFF Senior Bowl Tool allows fans to view and compare participating players using their full 2025 PFF grades, wins above average (WAA) and measurements, while the 2026 Big Board and BigBoard Builder allow users to gauge the draft landscape and begin shaping their own evaluations. Fans looking to apply those evaluations can then explore outcomes through the PFF Mock Draft Simulator as the draft picture begins to take shape.

Estimated Reading Time: 7 minutes

Prepare for the 2026 NFL Draft with PFF+

Your complete draft preparation toolkit

Subscribe

The Senior Bowl is one of our favorite events of the entire offseason. It’s a great way for our staff to get a look at these players up-close-and-personal to see the grades and the advanced data points come to life. 

Here are 10 players who we would say are big risers on big boards after their practices week in Mobile.

Cincinnati WR Cyrus Allen

Allen wasn’t talked about much in this receiver class heading into Senior Bowl week, but after the highlight reel he put up for three straight practices, that is no longer the case. He recorded just 670 receiving yards this past season, but did have a 25.2% threat rate and 12 receiving touchdowns, along with 75.3 receiving grade. At 5-foot-11 and 180 pounds, he is on the smaller side, but he is so quick and controlled that he can create separation at will. His stock is certainly up after a strong week.

John Carroll University WR Tyren Montgomery

Montgomery’s story to get to the Senior Bowl really is something. He was a walk-on basketball player at LSU before moving home due to family matters. He wasn’t even thinking about getting back into sports until his brother told him he should try to get his foot in the door with football. After not playing in high school at all, he played flag football and used that tape to send to coaches. He first played at Nicholls State before finishing his career at John Carroll. He is obviously green on experience and some of the finer details of playing receiver, but his natural athleticism and explosiveness were eye-popping this week. We hope he gets an NFL combine invite. 

Kansas State C Sam Hecht

Hecht stood out from the very first practice and made some money for himself this week from how consistent he was. The true senior this past season earned an 80.0 overall grade, starting in the last 25 games of his college career. His natural leverage, great footwork and lower body control, paired with vice grip hands, allows him to be quick and strong while neutralizing rushes from all different types of pass-rushers. His performance this past week gives him a case to be one of the top centers – maybe the top one – in the class. 

Oklahoma LB Owen Heinecke

Heinecke is the kind of football player coaches will pound the table for on Day 3 of the draft. He’s undersized at 6-foot-1 and 224 pounds, but he plays with his hair on fire at all times. He was a constant force defending the run during the team portions of Senior Bowl practices, which should have been no surprise, as he earned run-defense grades above 70.0 in each of the last three seasons, including a career-best 78.8 this past season. Add his name to an already very deep linebacker class.

Arizona State OT Max Iheanachor

Iheanachor might have made the most money of any player in Mobile. The massive 6-foot-5 and 325-pound tackle prospect moved incredibly well at Senior Bowl practices, specifically as a pass blocker. He earned a 78.5 pass-blocking grade with just a 3.1% pressure percentage allowed while not allowing a single sack this season. He was very impressive in the one-on-one pass rush drills, especially on Days 2 and 3. He’ll get some top 50 talk after this week.

Texas A&M OT Dametrious Crownover

Crownover had a great first day of Senior Bowl practice, and though the next two days were a little more up and down, he was one of the biggest risers in the group due to his low starting point. He entered the week ranked in the 200s on the PFF big board due to a 58.4 pass-blocking grade this season. Nonetheless, in Mobile, his footwork was better, and he was able to use his massive 6-foot-6 and 330-pound frame with great arm length to his advantage to neutralize rushers. Even with just flashes of good play in pass protection from this week, coaches and general managers will be more likely to take a chance on his physical gifts a bit higher.

Georgia Tech OG Keyland Rutledge

Rutledge is a people-mover in the trenches, which we already knew. He earned a 76.8 run-blocking grade this past season, but many might be surprised to see his 85.4 run-blocking grade on outside zone blocking concepts. This hinted that he’s a good athlete as well, which showed up when run blocking and in pass protection work this week.  He was also one of the most outwardly competitive players at the event, consistently playing through the whistle and not backing down from any one-on-one rep.

Illinois ED Gabe Jacas

Jacas was already a top-60 player on the PFF big board entering the week, but after his three-day performance in Mobile, he’s going to rise into the top 50 and maybe even fringe Round 1 conversations. He weighed in at 6-foot-3 and 260 pounds after playing closer to 275 for the past two seasons. He showcased edge rusher versatility that we saw during his time at Illinois, winning from a wide-7 technique down to a 4i, but he did showcase some extra juice at that lower weight. The power in his game was still evident as well, which makes him a very alluring player for any odd front/multiple defense. He earned a career high in overall defensive (79.5) and pass-rush grade (88.1) this past season.

Michigan ED Derrick Moore

Moore doesn’t get enough credit for how much violence he plays with. Due to him as a stand-up outside linebacker who aligns wide at Michigan, the natural thought process is that he’s a smaller finesse rusher. However, he weighed in at 6-foot-3 and 255 pounds, which isn’t small at all. He won as a pass-rusher with quick hands – which we’re used to seeing, as he earned a 92.4 pass-rush grade this past season. However, he held the line of scrimmage and won with power more than expected in Mobile. 

Notre Dame WR Malachi Fields

Fields was the best “big” receiver in Mobile. He showed up at 6-foot-4 and 218 pounds, checking all the size boxes you would want for an “X” receiver. However, during practice, he also showed much better body control, precision and quickness with his routes, whether that was comebacks or more vertical routes. He also had one of the best plays of the week, a diving catch 50 yards down the field. He earned a 76.2 receiving grade this season, but his 40th percentile separation score versus single coverage also wasn’t too shabby. He was a mid-round projection going into the week, but we could see him get some early Day 2 love after the Senior Bowl.