On the heels of an exciting partnership between PFF and the Reese's Senior Bowl, analysts Steve Palazzolo, Mike Renner, Jordan Plocher and Josh Liskiewitz will be attending Senior Bowl practice leading up to the big game and sharing their live analysis right here.
Our running blog will be updated regularly, so be sure to bookmark the page and check back often.
Every Senior Bowl player you need to know: Offense | Defense
Thursday, January 28th
3:50 p.m. Paul McRoberts — wide receiver from FCS Southeast Missouri — has had a very strong practice today. He has been continually getting open and made scoring catches both in one-on-one's and team drills. He's been facing a much stiffer level of competition here in Mobile and is playing well.
3:46 p.m. Not that much was expected, but the South QBs have had a a rough practice. They've had a lot of red zone work this afternoon, and far too many throws have been off target to the wrong shoulder.
3:39 p.m. KSU OG Cody Whitehair just put together an impressive sequence of one-on-one pass pro reps, highlighted by a pancake versus an edge-rush attempt.
3:42 p.m. Georgia linebacker Jordan Jenkins is splitting time between defensive line pass-rush drills and off-the-ball linebacker coverage drills. He won two straight one-on-one pass-rush reps with outside moves before jogging across the field to join the rest of the linebackers.
3:38 p.m. Kansas State guard Cody Whitehair just put together an impressive sequence of reps in one-on-one pass protection drills, highlighted by a pancake versus an edge-rush attempt.
3:29 p.m. South Carolina tight end Jerell Adams has been very impressive today in practice. He won several reps in one-on-one red-zone drills. He moves well and should see some targets in the game on Saturday.
3:25 p.m. Oklahoma wide receiver Sterling Shepard, who was PFF's No. 1-ranked wide receiver in 2015, continues to win in one-on-one drills. His ability to change direction in the blink of an eye is getting him open in the red zone.
3:20 p.m. Out here at the South team practice, Duke safety Jeremy Cash had some struggles in one-on-one goal-line coverage drills. He was too physical on two reps, and was beaten clean on a third for a touchdown. He earned excellent run-defense and pass-rush grades for the Blue Devils, but was right around average in coverage.
12:39 p.m. Some standouts from North team one-on-one pass rush drills were Temple defensive tackle Matt Ioannides, Penn State defensive end Carl Nassib, Ohio State defensive tackle Adolphus Washington, and Notre Dame defensive tackle Sheldon Day.
11:47 p.m. Ohio State wide receiver Braxton Miller just took two steps and collapsed to the ground on one rep. He was helped up and is walking around. He's been very impressive so far today and hopefully can get back to playing soon.
11:27 a.m. Ohio State wide receiver Braxton Miller is putting on a show in one-on-one's. He is explosive in and out of his breaks and getting open down in the end zone in drills. Iowa tight end Henry Krieger Coble has made a few nice catches in one-on-one's this morning. He is out performing the other North tight ends in this drill.
11:02 a.m. A few roster updates:
North Dakota State offensive tackle Joseph Haeg is missing practice today with an injury but hopes to play in the game on Saturday.
Illinois wide receiver Geronimo Allison was added to the North roster. Allison was a Shrine Game attendee.
Measurements came in for the previous roster additions. Arkansas State tight end Darion Griswold was 6-3 and 249 pounds with 33-inch arms and 9-1/2 inch hands.
Arizona State running back DJ Foster was 5-10 and 193 pounds with 9 1/8 inch hands.
Wednesday, January 27th
5:08 p.m. We've been hoping to see some reps from Duke's Jeremy Cash at free safety, and the inexperience is evident. He's fantastic in the box, and excellent at taking on and shedding blocks, but as a single-high free safety he's a work in progress, as evidenced by a poor angle that led to a touchdown in 7-on-7. At this point, he's closer to a linebacker to a true safety. — Palazzolo
4:47 p.m. Sterling Shepard is explosive in and out of his cuts. He can create separation with his route running. He can win inside or outside. He's a fun player to watch. — Plocher
4:38 p.m. Jeremy Cash and Reggie Ragland both won their pass rush reps against running backs and tight ends. Not much of a surprise as both guys have demonstrated an ability to pass rush effectively this year.
4:13 p.m. South practice is underway and one matchup to watch is Eastern Kentucky edge defender Noah Spence going against Texas Tech OT Le'Raven Clark. Spence got the better of Clark on a few reps yesterday, some from a three-point stance and some while standing in more of a rush linebacker role. Spence is a legitimate prospect that has to answer more off-field questions and on-field. As for Clark, he had a strong season, finishing at no. 17 overall among offensive tackles, but he had a poor bowl game against the speed of LSU freshman edge rusher, Arden Key, and yesterday didn't help ease concerns about that performance. — Palazzolo
3:52 p.m. Disappointing news: WRs Leontee Carroo and Tajae Sharpe were both injured during North practice and they're out of the Senior Bowl. Carroo looked outstanding early in practice, still in the first-round mix at receiver. Battled injury this season, played only 363 snaps — Palazzolo
3:19 p.m. Some players that stood out positively in today's North practice were Louisiana Tech running back Kenneth Dixon, East Carolina tight end Bryce Williams, Ohio State wide receiver Braxton Miller, Rutgers wide receiver Leonte Carroo, Indiana offensive tackle Jason Spriggs, Temple defensive tackle Matt Ioannides, and Notre Dame defensive tackle Sheldon Day. — Plocher
2:41 p.m. The good and the bad on display for Carson Wentz on back to back plays. First he hits Braxton Miller on the deep comeback, off the big arm and tight spiral. He then comes back with a late pass to the sideline that should have been intercepted but was dropped. Wentz has big play potential, but made a number of questionable decisions in our seven games of evaluation. — Palazzolo
2:11 p.m. Notre Dame's Sheldon Day and Temple's Matt Ioannidis have both made plays in team drills with interior penetration. They are two of our top 10 graded defensive tackles. — Plocher
1:58 p.m. Boise State safety Darian Thompson is vying to become the top free safety prospect but he's also showing that he can be physical against tight ends in one-on-one drills. He's graded at +35.9 the last two years, including +19.0 in coverage. — Palazzolo
1:56 p.m. Rutgers wide receiver Leonte Carroo is getting separation and making catches in one-on-one drills. He graded very well when healthy. The Senior Bowl week is a big opportunity for him to showcase his skills, as he only played 363 snaps this season. — Plocher
10:25 a.m Arkansas State tight end Darion Griswold is a late addition to the South roster. Griswold is our 10th-ranked tight end in the draft class. He has the size and movement skills that NFL teams will covet for a tight end in the passing game and he also has graded well as a run blocker the past two seasons at Arkansas State. — Plocher
Tuesday, January 26th
6:08 p.m. Stanford inside linebacker Blake Martinez made a play in coverage to knock the ball away showing off his all-around game. He was very productive the last two seasons for Stanford especially as a run stopper.
5:56 p.m. Some of the issues we saw on Washington State OT Joe Dahl's college film are showing up here in Mobile. He has good feet and athleticism but repeatedly struggles against power moves. Indiana LT Jason Spriggs is ranked 13th on our list of 2016 offensive tackles, but has been very impressive today during North practice. His ability to change directions and stay with blocks despite counter moves will certainly have the NFL's attention. — Liskiewitz
5:37 p.m. The PFF team is now at the North team practice where all eyes are on North Dakota State Quarterback Carson Wentz. The Cowboys coaching staff gets to work with him closely all week. If things go well could he be Tony Romo's eventual successor in Dallas? — Plocher
3:57 p.m. Louisville DT Sheldon Rankins was expected to be one of the top DTs in Mobile and thus far has not disappointed. He had the highlight of 1-on-1 pass rush drills when he set up Missouri C Evan Boehm with a hard bull rush and spun back inside for a quick victory. — Liskiewitz
3:47 p.m. South team quarterbacks have been a bit off target during drills and have often resorted to checking down to tight ends. Baylor wide receiver Jay Lee just came back to the ball nicely for a catch. — Plocher
3:36 p.m. Alabama corner Cyrus Jones just recovered nicely on a route for a pass defensed. The next rep he was beat vertically by Clemson wide receiver Charone Peake. Cyrus is a fun player to watch compete. — Plocher
3:32 p.m. D.J. Reader is continuing his solid play in 9-on-7 drills. He just beat the reach block attempt of Glasgow to force a cutback on an outside zone run. — Liskiewitz
3:31 p.m. Sterling Shepard has been getting the better of the defensive backs in one-on-ones but the throws to him have been off target. — Plocher
3:30 p.m. Backs and tight ends versus linebackers were the feature of the day's first one on ones. The off-ball linebackers were given an opportunity to flash their blitzing chops and no one impressed more than Jeremy Cash. He may be a man without a position in the NFL as he played linebacker at Duke weighing under 220 pounds, but he rushed the passer like a defensive end. Cash won every single rep convincingly. — Renner
3:25 p.m. The South team is now going to the 9-on-7 portion of practice on one end and doing one-on-one drills between wide receivers and defensive backs on the other. Things are picking up. — Plocher
3:23 p.m. Clemson DT D.J. Reader is feasting on Missouri interior linemen during 1-on-1s. Three straight bull-and-rip move wins for him. –– Liskiewitz
3:13 p.m. TCU running back Aaron Green looking fast and fluid in positional drills but that's not surprising. He can make people miss. — Plocher
3:11 p.m. Cody Whitehair was the highest-graded left tackle in the FBS last season, but a number of factors have him sliding inside to guard here at the Senior Bowl. The biggest of which is Whitehair's limited length. His sub-32-inch arms are almost unheard of at the NFL level and I saw longer edge defenders routinely get into his body. The former Wildcat's hands though are fantastic and was one of the best in the country and maintaining blocks once locked in. His length will be far less of an issue on the interior. If he can maintain that high level of play throughout practice this week at guard, he could very well be the first guard off the board come April. — Renner
3:09 p.m. Keeping an eye on our top-rated wide receiver Sterling Shepard as he's getting coached up by the Jaguars' staff. He has a bigger frame than I thought for a guy who played primarily in the slot. He's also shown an ability to win outside and deep — he should be fun to watch in one-on-one drills. — Plocher
2:50 p.m. Michigan center Graham Glasgow played center at last week's Shrine Game but was announced at guard during this morning's weigh-in. He's playing center during position drills right now, but I suspect he'll see time at all three interior offensive line positions this week. — Liskiewitz
2:47 p.m. The first South practice is underway in Fairhope. Starting with some special teams work. — Plocher
2:45 p.m. Louisiana Tech defensive tackle Vernon Butler was nearly 6-4 and weighed 325 pounds with 34-inch long arms. He stood out in our grading all year and this week is an opportunity for him to showcase his talent against higher-caliber offensive linemen. — Plocher
2:31 p.m. Duke safety Jeremy Cash was nearly 6-1 and weighed 212 pounds at the Senior Bowl weigh-in. He was one of our more productive safetys but really made his mark as a run defender and pass rusher. The questions will be: Is he a safety or an outside linebacker? Does he have a Deone Bucannon role in the NFL? — Plocher
2:29 p.m. Virginia Tech DE Dadi Nicolas looked ripped up and maxed out at 235; teams will love his arm length (35 inches), and this is likely why he played so much 3-4 DE at Virginia Tech. I expect him to struggle in off-the-ball drills this week, but his ability to rush off the edge as an OLB will be coveted. — Liskiewitz
1:08 p.m. Former ASU Sun Devil D.J. Foster is a late addition to the Senior Bowl as a running back. Foster is a versatile playmaker who is equally at home playing slot receiver as he is at running back. He'll be a player to keep an eye on this week. — Plocher
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