Senior Bowl Dish: Clemson's Hill is best of the CBs
Jan. 26, 2006 Print it
By War Room scouts
MOBILE, Ala. -- Wednesday is generally the most physically demanding day of the week leading up to the Senior Bowl. The practice tends to be spirited and aggressive as players begin to get more comfortable with their assignments, teammates and surroundings. Things will begin to taper off now as we get closer to Saturday's kickoff.
We spent much of Wednesday's sessions taking a closer look at the cornerbacks, and Clemson's Tye Hill was the best of the bunch. Hill has been the best press corner here this week.
Last year, Pacman Jones was the first cornerback drafted -- ahead of Carlos Rogers -- because of his press coverage ability. The talk here in Mobile is that Hill is as strong as Jones when it comes to press coverage technique. Hill has shown great speed and has created a lot of buzz this week. There is now a real battle brewing between Hill and Virginia Tech's Jimmy Williams for the top corner spot.
Penn State's Anwar Phillips, who has good size and great hands, is a natural receiver and has caught everything thrown his way. He's tall and thin and has good feet and changes directions well. He also spent some time catching punts before practice and looked very natural. He has all the skills to be a good cover corner at the NFL level, though he lacks elite speed. He's looking like a third-rounder, maybe even a second-round pick if he continues to impress.
West Virginia's Jahmile Addae looked completely out of place. He's very stiff, with limited range, and runs heavy, more like a linebacker.
Texas' Cedric Griffin has helped himself this week in Mobile. He's a 'tweener size-wise and likely will be a cover 2 corner in the NFL. Griffin, a good athlete with loose, fluid hips, lacks flat-out speed but plays aggressively in coverage. He's shaping up to be a third-rounder come draft day.
Georgia's Greg Blue also has helped himself this week. He's a better athlete for his size than most would expect. There is some concern about his awareness, but his physical tools are impressive and he could push his way into the second round.
Tim Jennings, Blue's college teammate, is another interesting prospect. If Jennings were bigger, he would have a chance to be the first cornerback taken in this draft. He's a fast-twitch guy with quick feet and excellent change-of-direction skills. He has the cover skills, but he projects only as a nickel back in the NFL because of his size his size. He will get a serious look from several teams. In today's NFL, teams are in nickel defensive packages 40 percent of the time. Jennings might not start, but he definitely will see significant playing time in the NFL because of his skills.
A study in contrasts
At safety, Syracuse's Anthony Smith has not tested well and hasn't stood out on drills, but every scout says he is a better football player than he is an athlete. He's aggressive and physical; in simple terms, he will knock you out with his hitting ability.
Miami of Ohio cornerback Darrell Hunter, on the other hand, is a test guy who has moved around well in the drills and competes in coverage. But scouts say he's a workout warrior who does not play with tenacity and will disappear on game day.
Battle in the trenches
The ongoing battle between Virginia offensive tackle D'Brickashaw Ferguson and Boston College defensive end Mathias Kiwanuka took a turn Wednesday. Ferguson was clearly the winner, and Kiwanuka appeared to get frustrated as practice wore on and as Ferguson continued to dominate.
Kiwanuka did get a scare at one point. Lined up across from Boston College teammate Jeremy Trueblood, Kiwanuka beat him clean, but in an attempt to save the block Trueblood grabbed Kiwanuka and dragged him to the ground. Kiwanuka injured his wrist on the play but was able to return to action.
Trueblood has not been impressive. He gets beaten consistently and, as a result, has been holding and grabbing. He could end up getting someone hurt, as he almost did Wednesday.
