It’s year three for the entire Cover 1 NFL Draft team at the Senior Bowl and it’s off to a great start. Despite the early morning wakeup call to be at the convention center by 7am for the early morning weigh-ins, it’s been a solid first day for the South team.

Starting with the weigh-ins, there were plenty of players that turned heads when their measurements were revealed. The player that helped himself the most during that period was Terrell Lewis from Alabama. The Crimson Tide edge rusher checked in at 6’5″ and 258 pounds with 83 1/2 wingspan. The length immediately stands out and so does his explosiveness. His biggest question mark that needs answering will be his health.

Some other names that had a good start to their morning was the Mobile, Alabama product Lamical Perine. He checked in at 5’10” and 211 pounds but he had no bad weight and carried himself well. Two other names to keep tabs on from a height-weight perspective are Ben Bartch from St. John’s and Alex Taylor from South Carolina State.

Starting with Bartch, he’s every bit of 6’5″ and 308 pounds with an 80 1/8 wingspan. He looked the part of an offensive tackle at the next level. Lastly, Alex Taylor from South Carolina State is the tallest and longest player at the Senior Bowl. Taylor stands 6’8″ and 308 pounds with an arms longer than my khakis at 36 1/8 and a wingspan that extends at 88-inches. He’s raw but that length stands out.

For more information on on the weigh-ins, be sure to checkout the most recent post from Christian Page recapping everything from this morning.

Media Day Interview(s)

To start off media day, I got a chance to talk with Tennessee edge rusher Darrell Taylor. He checked into the Senior bowl at 6’3″ 259 pounds and had an 80 3/4 wingspan. His long arms clearly stood out for his frame and keep in mind he will provide plenty of explosiveness that drafts him. Here’s the audio from my interview with him.

After speaking with Taylor, I spoke with Penn State linebacker, Cam Brown. His length and versatility instantly stands out in person and on tape. At the Senior Bowl, he checked in at 6’5″ 232 pounds and had a 79″ wingspan.

Cam Brown Interview from Erik Turner on Vimeo.

South Practice Notes

As the wind whipped through stadium and slapped me in the face, the South practice had a pretty good day of practice. Starting with the quarterbacks, Justin Herbert connected on some deep shots on the far right sideline. From the parts I saw, he had good command of the offense and looked comfortable running through the offense. As for Jalen Hurts, he looked uncomfortable at times and had at least one miscue on a comeback route with his receiver. He threw the ball deep and should have placed the ball near the sideline.

Regardless of who the quarterback was, Austin Mack from Ohio State was an early favorite with an established connection already. He was a late addition to the roster but checked in at 6’1″ 212 pounds and had a 79″ wingspan and 10″ hands. His route running isn’t as defined as his teammate on the South roster, Van Jefferson but he was targeted early and often throughout practice.

One of my favorites for the #SeniorBowl is Florida WR Van Jefferson. Crispy route runner pic.twitter.com/mCAQoc8DbO

— Russell Brown (@RussNFLDraft) January 21, 2020

Speaking of Van Jefferson, the Florida wide receiver was hands down the best route runner from what I saw during practice. Checking in at 6’1″ and 197 pounds, he’ll find a role as a slot receiver and it won’t be surprising to see him win in the red-zone despite having a shorter field to work with.

Despite not watching the one-on-ones for the South practice, Javon Kinlaw made an impression from others on the Cover 1 staff. When I arrived for practice, I did watch the defensive lineman go through some bag drills and Kinlaw certainly stood out with the pop that he carries in his hands. Some other defensive lineman that stood out during the bags portion of practice was Robert Windsor from Penn State. During the weigh-ins he looked like an average joe but when you stand next to him, he’s every bit of the 6’4″ and 287 pounds he checked in at. Meanwhile, his hands were incredibly active and he showed some good lower body movement when going through drills.

Pitt DB Dane Jackson is already standing out in one on ones. We talked about how that period favors the WR. He's still holding his own. Nice rep. pic.twitter.com/iiHZ1e4SKj

— TURRON DAVENPORT (@TDavenport_NFL) January 21, 2020

Lastly, Dane Jackson from Pittsburgh had some bright spots in coverage. There will need to be some film sessions to reconfirm what I saw in person but he played well in man coverage. In fact, he matched up on Devin Duvernay on back-to-back reps and forced consecutive incompletions and made Duvernay work on every step of his route. Keep in mind, Jackson isn’t the biggest guy on the field either. He checked in at 5’11” and 180 pounds and had an underwhelming arm length of 30 7/8 inches. Either way, he had some impressive reps during the first practice.