Senior Bowl Wrap Up: Winners and losers from the week of practices in Mobile

Who were the biggest winners and losers from the week in Mobile at the Senior Bowl?

The Senior Bowl practices wrapped up on Thursday last week. While the game will take place on Saturday, most of the value from these events comes during practices when the players are working directly with the coaching staffs. The Senior Bowl is only part of the draft process, but it’s a good place for players to pick up some strong momentum heading into the spring. That was the case for Braden Fiske last year as he showcased his ability along the defensive line in Mobile before he was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams. Here were this week’s biggest winners and losers from the week.

• Winners from Day 1 in Mobile includes potential Rams target at linebacker
• Senior Bowl Standouts: Iowa State WR duo with Rams connection shine in Mobile
• Senior Bowl: Who impressed on the final day of practices?

Winners

QB Jaxson Dart, Ole Miss

It’s important not to overreact to a week of practices at the Senior Bowl for the quarterbacks. However, it’s still worth noting that Dart had a pretty good week. He was the only quarterback that seemed to be willing to really push the ball down the field on time in structure and he did so with accuracy. During a week like this, it’s also important to see improvement and that happened with Dart as he seemed to get better and more comfortable every day.

There will be some that want to push him into the first round conversation. However, he isn’t there just yet. There are still a lot of questions when it comes to his decision making. The Ole Miss quarterback is someone that probably needs to sit for a year or two before being thrown in as a starter. He remains in the mid-second round area.

TE Elijah Arroyo, Miami

Not many had Elijah Arroyo circled as someone to watch coming into Senior Bowl week. However, he really stood out and put himself comfortably into the TE3 conversation in the draft. Arroyo was one of the standouts on Day 1 and continued it into days two and three. He showed crisp route-running and some of the nuances when it comes to leverages in coverage.

It’s possible that the Rams target a tight end in the draft. Coming into the week, Arroyo may have been seen as a third-round player. However, he may have moved himself up into the second-round after the week that he just had in Mobile. In a potential trade back, Arroyo makes a lot of sense for the Rams and would be a great fit. He’s an impressive athlete and good receiver which are two traits that the Rams look for at tight end.

WR Jack Bech, TCU

Coming into the week, Bech had a lot of pressure to perform well. He was wearing the number seven to honor his brother who was tragically killed in the terrorist attack on New Year’s Day in New Orleans. Bech only got better as the week progressed. By Thursday, he was catching almost everything in his direction.

However, it wasn’t just Bech’s ability as a pass catcher that stood out. He was extremely physical as a blocker and looked reminiscent of Cooper Kupp or Puka Nacua in the intent that he went about run blocking. The Rams have a type at wide receiver. They need some variety at the position, but Bech would be a perfect fit.

DL Darius Alexander, Toledo

Coming into Mobile, the defensive line room was completely stacked. With players like Mike Green, Deone Walker, Cam Jackson, TJ Sanders, and others, this was a position group that was going to be difficult to stand out in.

That’s exactly what Alexander did. He was a player that I had written down as a potential fit for the Rams coming into the week. His speed off of the line and alignment versatility is something that they will value. They’ve also hit the Toledo pipeline before with Desjuan Johnson. Part of what makes the Senior Bowl special is smaller school prospects showing that they can hold their own. Alexander made a name for himself and is now someone that many will be watching throughout the draft process.

iOL Grey Zabel, North Dakota State

Again, part of what makes the Senior Bowl special is smaller school players proving themselves. There may not have been a player who did that more than Grey Zabel. I talked with Brandon Thorn of Trench Warfare in Mobile and he said that Zabel looked like the best offensive lineman during practices.

The North Dakota State offensive lineman didn’t just have one good day of practice. He was consistently the best player in the trenches and he very rarely lost a rep during 1-on-1s. Zabel didn’t just do it at one position either. While he played at tackle last year at North Dakota State, he played at all three positions on the inside at the Senior Bowl without dropping in level.

Losers

QB Jalen Milroe, Alabama

Milroe was the top-rated quarterback coming into Mobile, but he did not look the part. While he finished with a stronger day three, Milroe made the easy throws look hard during the first two days of practice. The Alabama quarterback’s worst moment was during team drills on Wednesday when he fumbled the snap, got sacked, and then managed to throw an interception.

Milroe simply struggled to play on time. While he certainly has the talent, he’s going to need time to sit as a backup and learn how to win outside of just his athleticism. His mechanics as a pocket passer are going to need serious refinement.

TE Harold Fannin Jr., Bowling Green

The tight end that many were hoping would show out at the Senior Bowl was Harold Fannin Jr. from Bowling Green. While Fannin Jr. didn’t necessarily have a bad week, he also didn’t stand out very often. He finished the week stronger than he started it, but as someone that needed to stand out as the best tight end in Mobile, that belonged to Arroyo.

Fannin Jr. did show some good moments as a blocker. However, the bar was set high coming into the week and he just didn’t meet expectations. He’ll still be a player that gets taken in the second round. With a good week, he probably could have pushed himself into the first.

OT Aireontae Ersery, Minnesota

Ersery is someone that has been mocked to the Rams at left tackle. While he has good size, he showed that he does still have a lot of room to grow before he’s some that can be trusted to start on day one. Ersery has a high ceiling, but he’s rough around the edges and will need a lot of development to hit his ceiling.

Again, this isn’t to say that Ersery necessarily had a bad week. He displayed some good power and had some good moments in teams drills. Teams are going to fall in love with his size and raw potential. With that said, he is probably more of a day two pick that would work better as a high-level backup in year one and hopefully be ready to start in year two.