Patreon: How Many First Rounders Could the Senior Bowl Produce?

tl;dr: not many, if any. Thanks for coming today - I'll see myself out.

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tl;dr: not many, if any. Thanks for coming today – I’ll see myself out.

Seriously, forgive the constant barrage of Senior Bowl content this week. I just have to get these thoughts out of my head and onto paper before they’re gone. This is the last piece focusing solely on the Senior Bowl that I intend to write. I still have my Mobile food journal dropping tomorrow, and an episode of Sports Punch coming down the pipeline, chronicling my experience down in Mobile last week. But, for me, after 16 articles, and what will end up being six podcasts in a week’s time, I’ve just about drained my brain of ideas anyway. 

There’s one left lingering, though. That’s what brings us to today’s column – how many of these prospects actually have a chance at going in the first round? First of all, I do think it’s possible that more than one is selected among the first 32 picks. I’m not particularly high on this draft class as a whole, and I think that actually lends itself towards more of these Senior Bowl prospects being in contention for the first round than people think because teams got that interview and first impression with these guys early on. Which players were able to make that count? After the first handful of prospects, this draft feels like a crap shoot of guys with tons of talent and not a lot of polish. So, I’m really not going to be surprised by anything come April. 

But, if you’re putting a gun to my head, these are the guys I’d say positioned themselves well enough to sneak into that first round consideration range at the 2023 Senior Bowl. 

OG O’Cyrus Torrence – If I were a betting man, which I am…I just don’t know if you can bet on when a prospect will get drafted…I’d say Torrence ends up as the only Senior Bowl participant that’s actually drafted in the first round. He’s the top guard prospect in this draft – he’s a road-grader that improved his stock this week by showing he can play left guard and right guard. 

OC John Michael Schmitz – JMS is a proven product in my book. He is the best center in this class…it’s just…y’know…how often do you need a center in the first round? He has a lightning quick first step, superb lateral agility, and leadership qualities in spades. Whether he goes in the first round or not, I think he’s the most likely of this bunch to be a Week 1 starter. 

EDGE Isaiah Foskey – Foskey continues to be mocked right around that 30-45 range. He plays with more power than twitch, and his technique gives him an incredibly high floor. For a team that doesn’t have the luxury of waiting to develop a pass rusher, Foskey is a safe prospect, and ultimately, that could end up being what gets him selected on Day 1. 

EDGE Keion White – White is the one name on this list that I think probably improved his draft stock the most and raised some eyebrows in the process. Most analysts I read had a 3rd-4th round grade on him. But, he has straight line power that you just can’t coach, and he won on so many reps against talented offensive linemen last week that I heard through the grapevine that scouts would not be surprised if he snuck into the first round. 

OT Jaelyn Duncan – I’m projecting a bit here with Duncan, and not necessarily reading the tea leaves. But, I’ve read so many people say that Duncan has “first round traits,” but a long way to go as far as technique is concerned. And, we saw that early on in the week in Mobile. Duncan looks pretty raw, but I found him to be coachable throughout the week, and by Thursday, he was winning more reps with technique. To me, that says this guy is on the trajectory to ironing out some of those unfinished tendencies. With the traits that he has, someone could end up taking a flier on him if there’s an early run on tackles. I wouldn’t be surprised if he ends up being the 4th or 5th tackle off the board, assuming he continues on this trajectory towards improvement. 

OG Jarrett Patterson – Man, you could almost flip Foskey’s evaluation from defense to offense, and boom…you’ve got Jarrett Patterson. I still see him floating around the first round, and really it just depends on how many guards actually go in the top 32. I think O’Torrence is safely the first guard off the board, but if another team needs one in the first round, Patterson could be the choice for his technique, polish, and balance. 

OT Tyler Steen – I’m surprised I haven’t been run out of town for this one yet, as most people see Steen as a 3rd round prospect at best. And, to be fair, it’s for good reason. His play at Alabama was inconsistent this season, and his lapses in technique had people questioning his concentration and/or effort. That’s fair. But, I’m going to project a bit with Steen the same way I did with Duncan. It almost felt like a different dude showed up in Mobile. He was feisty, getting in there and battling with every defensive lineman they put in front of him. While his technique wasn’t perfect, it was much more consistent than I’d seen all season, and he won a hell of a lot of reps because of it. I’m not sure why they slotted him in at left guard during the game, but he does offer that positional versatility. If the guy who showed up during Senior Bowl week keeps showing up throughout the draft process, he could be a surprise selection among the last few picks of the first round. More on Steen in a piece I wrote last week (linked below). 

All Senior Bowl content is sponsored by Lyons Ford. They’re not your typical dealership! They will always give you every discount you qualify for, and give you you the most bang for your buck for your trade-in vehicle. You won’t regret doing business with them. Reach out to Zach on Twitter if you’re looking at getting a new or used vehicle.

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Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network, and a Dogs Playing Poker on velvet connoisseur. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD, #BeBetter, and ‘Minds right, asses tight.’ “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, Nashville, Yankee Candle, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley.

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