What’s being said about potential Detroit Lions fits after the Senior Bowl
For the first time in over thirty years, the Detroit Lions advanced to the conference championship round this season. And for the first time in years, that has also forced draft talk to take a backseat.
However, after the week at the Senior Bowl, it’s time to examine possible matches for the Lions and their current trajectory. The Lions need to improve their depth at edge rusher, outside cornerback, and defensive line. They will also face difficult guard questions because Jonah Jackson and Graham Glasgow require new contracts.
“He entered the week squarely on the radar for scouts with his combination of size and game film, but it’s different when you see him in person. Mitchell utilizes a lot of trap coverage techniques off of press, where he makes an early leverage declaration and forces the receiver to release outside. From there, he has shown off the speed and body control to stay in phase with receivers and has the physicality to close off the catch space.” — NFL.com (Lance Zierlein)
“Mitchell’s ability to locate, disrupt, and finish plays while maintaining balance in his transitions allowed him to consistently lock down receivers.” Even though he lost against (Roman) Wilson during exercises, he still had the best victory percentage of all the cornerbacks in this group. The Athletic, starring Dane Brugler
“He had several strong reps in the National Team practice Tuesday morning, stopping an out route to Arizona WR Jacob Cowing and then thwarting a slot fade to Rice WR Luke McCaffrey (younger brother of the Super Bowl-bound Christian McCaffrey).” “He appeared quite comfortable in man coverage (both off and press).” The NFL (Eric Edholm)
Toledo’s Quinyon Mitchell, CB
Quinyon Mitchell, the cornerback for Toledo, was a huge winner during Tuesday’s Senior Bowl practice. Mitchell was a strong cornerback who excelled in one-on-one drills. Through exceptional man-to-man technique, Mitchell regularly shifted the scales back in favor of the wide receiver in a situation that is typically biased in his favor.Draft Network (Mello, Justin)
Missouri’s Darius Robinson, DL
As soon as we landed in Mobile, Alabama on Monday afternoon, the excitement surrounding Robinson began to grow. The 6-foot-5, 286-pound defender is all muscle, and he moves with incredible flexibility and agility, much like Arik Armstead. Throughout practice, Robinson—who played both inside and outside the tackle at Missouri—moved around the defensive line and won every rep I witnessed. He has genuine top-32 talent and, with 8.5 sacks this season, ought to be in the first round of most mock drafts held after the Senior Bowl.ESPN (Matt Miller)
“Robinson demonstrated a variety of distinct setup and finishing moves in addition to his ability to win with strength and speed. He prevailed from both inside and outside the tackle in different formations.
In my mock draft from mid-January, Robinson was selected by the Ravens in the second round. It is more plausible now that Baltimore would have to choose in the first round in order to acquire him. The Athletic, starring Dane Brugler
Before the Senior Bowl, the excitement was building, and it has only gotten stronger every day. Growing up not far from Detroit, Robinson expressed his desire to be invited to his home state’s NFL Draft in 2024. The NFL (Eric Edholm)
Haynes, Christian, OG, Connecticut
Haynes played right guard his entire career, raising serious concerns among scouts over his versatility in the position. However, he demonstrated a lot of physicality, lower-body strength, and finishing ability when playing both guard positions in Mobile. Prior to this week, Haynes was projected as a fourth-round pick, but as of right now, I’m talking about him in the third round. — Jordan Reid on ESPN
“He can ride the bull and land with authority because he has enough core balance.” Haynes was on the verge of being selected in the top 100 coming into the week, but he improved his prospects on Day 2. The Athletic, starring Dane Brugler
Chau Smith-Wade, CB, University of Washington.
In the Senior Bowl game, Chau Smith-Wade returned an interception 83 yards for a touchdown, earning him the title of National team player of the game.
Chau Smith-Wade of Washington State leaped to intercept Milton’s overthrow, and following the pick, Smith-Wade momentarily stopped. However, Smith-Wade quickly understood he had not been touched down and could return the pick because this game was played under NFL regulations, not collegiate ones. And boy, did he ever—he managed to run it back 83 yards while dodging roughly half a dozen players—but he was halted just one yard short of a pick-six. On the game’s last play, Smith-Wade made another intercepted pass, this time from Michael Pratt. The NFL (Eric Edholm)
UCLA, EDGE, Laiatu Latu
Following the second practice day, Laiatu Latu experienced leg soreness, which forced her to withdraw from the week. However, he was praised for demonstrating his quickness and agility to round the corner during pass-rushing drills in those two performances.
“My best January memory was spending an afternoon watching Latu’s pass-rush movie. I may not have much of a life, according to some. Perhaps you are not as fond of great pass-rush skill as I am. Latu demonstrated on film that he had a range of go-to attacks and counters that he can employ to outmaneuver opponents, and on Tuesday, we witnessed him practicing in the same manner. — NFL.com(Zierlein Lance)
Mich.’s Roman Wilson, WR
“For a small person, he plays large on the ball and is robust, quick, and swift. For this reason, the Tyler Lockett analogy. I had the good fortune to spend five years in Seattle with Tyler. They seem like quite similar players to me. Jim Nagy, executive director of Senior Bowl, to MLive
“If Wilson finds the right fit in the draft, defenses are going to have a problem with him.” — NFL.com(Zierlein Lance)
“Wilson possesses both long and short-range speed, but what really stands out is his capacity to throw opponents off balance and generate leverage for a break. He occasionally moves a touch too quickly and can become unbalanced during breaks.
But in Mobile, Wilson demonstrated his competitiveness and excellent ball-catching ability, solidifying his ranking as a top-75 talent in a draft loaded with receivers. The Athletic, starring Dane Brugler
Sweat, T’Vondre, DL, Texas
“Sweat, who is probably around 360 pounds, chose not to weigh himself on the scale in Mobile, but he was present for team and one-on-one exercises. In addition to using his inherent strength to intimidate the man in front of him, he is swift enough to attack several holes and score big runs. The Athletic, starring Dane Brugler
