Wright - Game Article

Nors

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January 28, 2006
Senior Bowl - North Game Report
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Scott Wright
President, NFL Draft Countdown

The following are my initial impressions of some of the players from the game. Please keep in mind that I watched the game from the sidelines and have not yet seen the television broadcast so this is VERY preliminary.

At quarterback I saw a lot of the same things from Jay Cutler that I had seen all week, a great arm, flashes of brilliance but largely a lot of inconsistency. On the other hand Charlie Whitehurst was very accurate and looked excellent while Michael Robinson was very effective running the ball but didn't show anything as a passer. At running back Jerome Harrison was shifty and relatively productive but runs east / west a little too much while Terrence Whitehead had some tough runs up the middle. Among the wide receivers the North didn't have anyone who stood out, although Derek Hagan did have a touchdown catch. The standout pass catcher was actually a tight end as Dominique Byrd capped off an excellent week by coming through with a tremendous game performance. Byrd is simply a force in the passing game. Joe Klopfenstein also did a nice job and made some catches early on including a touchdown. Along the offensive line Daryn Colledge looked good and gets to the second level well while Ryan O'Callaghan really made it look easy at right tackle.

On defense perhaps the best performance put in by any prospect on either team was that by Penn State's Tamba Hali, who had two sacks and was a major presence throughout the game. The other stud up front was Gabe Watson, who was a force in the middle and his impact can truly not be measured by stats. Also, Mathias Kiwanuka did not play in the game due to a shoulder injury as expected but I spoke with him afterwards and he told me he was only held out for precautionary reasons and that he will be ready for the Combine. At linebacker I thought D'Qwell Jackson looked good but he was the only one who really stood out to me right away. In the secondary there were a number of impressive players, with Anwar Phillips making some impact plays, Daniel Bullocks once again showed a knack for being around the ball and Anthony Smith displayed his tackling skills.

The story of this game was the guys in the trenches, who really dominated their South counterparts on both sides of the ball. Tamba Hali was the most impressive player I saw on the field while Charlie Whitehurst outshined his more hyped teammate Jay Cutler.
 

Rack

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Watson seems like he's gonna be Jimmy Kennedy part II, IMO.
 

Nors

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No,

Watson plays a lot like Ted Washington, Wilfork. He's a 3-4 NT on Sundays.

Absorbs double teams easily and collapses pocket often. Very disruptive yesterday with 1/2 sack on Cutler and freeing up rest of Line. He was very disruptive all game long - I replayed it. Wright saw it in person too.

Dominant game by North Line.
 

Tio

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Nors said:
No,

Watson plays a lot like Ted Washington, Wilfork. He's a 3-4 NT on Sundays.

Absorbs double teams easily and collapses pocket often. Very disruptive yesterday with 1/2 sack on Cutler and freeing up rest of Line. He was very disruptive all game long - I replayed it. Wright saw it in person too.

Dominant game by North Line.
Sack on cutler? Aren't they both on the North?
 

Nors

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Tio said:
Sack on cutler? Aren't they both on the North?


My Bad Croyle.

The play where he stepped up in pocket and was CRUSHED.

Hali had a nice game on edge. Cutler looked his usual up and down with questionable decision making.
 
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