by Dane Brugler, Senior Analyst for NFLDraftScout.com, distributed in partnership with The Sports Xchange and CBSSports.com.
MOBILE, Ala. — It didn’t matter the drill, the South Team’s defensive line dominated during Senior Bowl practice Wednesday.
Louisville defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins, Clemson defensive tackle D.J. Reader and Eastern Kentucky defensive end Noah Spence were the main culprits.
Rankins (6-foot-2, 305 pounds) was nearly unblockable during one-on-one drills due to his quickness off the whistle and powerful arms to drive blockers backwards. He used a variety of hand moves to swat jabs and swim past the blocker’s shoulder.
Rankins also impressed during 11-on-11 reps due to his ball awareness, showing the ability to read, detach himself from the block and make plays in the backfield. He entered this week with first-round grades already, and he is only helping himself in Mobile.
An impressive mover for his size, Reader (6-3, 340) looked very balanced and carried his weight well. He showed the lower-body flexibility to play low and win the leverage battle as he shot upfield. Kansas State guard Cody Whitehair (6-4, 300), who is the top offensive line prospect in Mobile, was the only South lineman who had much success vs. Reader.
Reader missed the first half of the season due to some “personal issues,” and NFL teams will be doing a lot of homework on the reasons he felt as if he needed to be away from Clemson.
The player who had arguably the best day overall was Spence (6-3, 254), as none of the offensive tackles on the South Team had an answer for his edge quickness. He was sudden off the snap with the get-off speed to breeze past blockers, winning the corner and flattening to the pocket.
Even Le’Raven Clark, who boasts massive arms (36 1/4 inches) and wingspan (86 inches) and has done a nice job this week, couldn’t hang with Spence’s quickness around the edge.
Spence, a former Ohio State and Eastern Kentucky pass rusher, entered the week as the top prospect overall on my top-50 draft board, and he is living up to that high-billing.
Other notes from Wednesday’s South Team practice:
–While Braxton Miller is clearly the top athlete and receiver on the North squad, Oklahoma wide receiver Sterling Shepard (5-10, 193) owns that distinction for the South team. He routinely proved to be a mismatch during one-on-one drills vs. cornerbacks, using his short-area burst to create spacing and give his quarterback a clean target. If the corner doesn’t make contact with Shepard off the line of scrimmage, it is too easy for the smallish but talented receiver to make something happen.
–Considering the fact that he finished third in receiving for Baylor this year, wide receiver Jay Lee (6-2, 214) is an easy player to overlook. However, he is making sure no one overlooks him this week during practices. With 33-inch arms, Lee has done a great job extending to pluck the ball away from his body, catching everything with his hands. He made the catch of the day using his large catch radius. With Alabama cornerback Cyrus Jones riding him down the sideline, Lee was able to locate, adjust his frame and stick out his right arm to spear the ball and complete the catch.
–BYU defensive end Bronson Kaufusi (6-6, 281) remains a perplexing prospect. He isn’t a natural bender and plays much too high, but he is agile and is able to win with speed and redirection skills. Although he uses his hands aggressively, Kaufusi doesn’t generate much power at the point of attack. Several around the league have yet to figure him out.
–It has been a mixed bag from the defensive backs on the South squad. Samford cornerback James Bradberry (6-1, 209) struggled vs. Shepard and lacked the short-area burst to stick with him. However, when he can press and play close to the line of scrimmage, Bradberry extends to disrupt the route and stays balanced while keeping his eyes in the backfield to make a play on the ball.
Auburn cornerback Jonathan Jones (5-9, 178) doesn’t look like much, but he played sticky coverage during drills, anticipating routes and staying in phase with receivers. He would not allow himself to be fooled and got his hands on the ball more than once.
–Dane Brugler is a Senior Analyst for NFLDraftScout.com, distributed in partnership with The Sports Xchange and CBSSports.com.