2025 Senior Bowl Preview: The Draft Starts In Mobile
Scouts, talent evaluators, pundits, and NFL decision-makers will soon descend on the University of South Alabama for a jam-packed week of scouting: The Senior Bowl. They will observe a few practices and finally, a game that will feature some of the future stars of the league. The Senior Bowl is a unique opportunity for scouts to get an extended look at prospects from across the country on a level playing field with stout competition they may not have faced while in school.
The practices especially can show scouts controlled 1-on-1 reps at the highest level of competition that are hard to find in-game tape. The presumptive top picks rarely accept invitations, but, among that next class of players, a dominant showing at the Senior Bowl can cement their place in the first round; last year’s Senior Bowl featured 10 first round picks.
- The week will kick off on Monday with player weigh-ins
- Practices will be held Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday (28th-30th) with coverage beginning at 3 p.m. ET on NFL Network and NFL.
- The game will take place on Saturday, Feb 1st at 2:30 p.m. ET. also on NFL Network and NFL+
The Race for QB3
Similarly to last year, there is a group of players penciled in as top picks – Shedeur Sanders and Cam Ward this year, Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, and Drake Maye last year – and a group of QBs on the outside looking in, participating in the senior bowl and hoping to hear their names called sooner rather than later in May’s NFL Draft. Bo Nix and Michael Penix both eventually were drafted in the first round after participating in the 2024 Senior Bowl, and this year’s Senior Bowl will feature even more notable names under center in Mobile:
- Jalen Milroe, Alabama
- Jaxson Dart, Ole Miss
- Dillon Gabriel, Oregon
- Riley Leonard, Notre Dame
- Will Howard, Ohio State
- Seth Henigan, Memphis
- Tyler Shough, Louisville
- Taylor Elgersma, Canada
Of this group, Milroe and Dart are leaders in the clubhouse to break into the first round; #27 and #53, respectively, on NFL Mock Draft Database’s Consensus Big Board as of this publication. If Milroe’s tantalizing athleticism (*ahem* Rich Hribar do I have your attention now) or Dart’s arm and accuracy aren’t persuasive for NFL decision-makers, maybe Gabriel’s experience is. Bo Nix was a late riser last season for his wealth of experience as a signal caller and Gabriel has even more career starts (63 for Gabriel, 61 for Nix). Leonard and Howard would be serious dark horses to go on Day 1 or 2, but both led their teams to the national championship and pedigree is always something important men in important rooms can appreciate.
An RB class as deep and talented as ever
Easily the strongest skill position group of this draft – and maybe the strongest group in years – is the running back position. Without even considering the crowned jewel of the class, Heisman finalist Ashton Jeanty from Boise State (perhaps the best RB prospect since Saquon Barkley) the class is LOADED.
In NFL Mock Draft Database’s Consensus Big Board there are 16 running backs in this class with peak rankings in the top 100, a number DOUBLE that mark for the 2024 class (eight players), and with no previous class in the ballpark since the sites’ early years when data was limited (2023 – eleven players, ’22 – eleven, ’21 – eight, ’20 – eight).
In such a loaded class it is imperative for players to set themselves apart, and that’s just what this crop of Senior Bowl participants hopes to do this week in Mobile:
- Cam Skattebo, Arizone State
- Devin Neal, Kansas
- Ollie Gordon, Oklahoma State
- Bhayshul Tuten, Virginia Tech
- Kalel Mullings, Michigan
- RJ Harvey, UCF
- Woody Marks, USC
- Damien Martinez, Miami
- Brashard Smith, SMU
- Trevor Etienne, Georgia
- Jarquez Hunter, Auburn
- Donovan Edwards, Michigan
- LeQuint Allen, Syracuse
- Marcus Yarns, Delaware
Of this group, 6 players have top 100 ranking peaks I mentioned earlier (Skattebo, Neal, Gordon, Tuten, Mullings, and Harvey). Only time will tell if Barkley’s newfound dominance with the Eagles will do anything to reset the market on running backs but a class like this will surely get NFL teams excited. Skattebo, 5-11 215 lbs, put on his best Saquon impression with his herculean efforts for the Sun Devils in their comeback upset bid in overtime against Texas in the college football playoff. He finished with a staggering 30 carries, eight receptions, 284 total yards plus a 42-yard passing TD, and a literal puke and rally – the Devils were down 24-8 in the 4th quarter before Skattebo lost his lunch, went super saiyan, and brought ASU back to force OT.
If anyone apart from him can rise into the early 2nd round of rookie drafts, Ollie Gordon and Devin Neal are likely the favorites. Gordon, 6-2, 225, a big bruising workhorse back, dominated for the Cowboys in 2023 (324 plays for 2062 scrimmage yards) but took a major step back this season, barely eclipsing half his ’23 production. Neal, 5-11, 208, is as quick as they come and the all-time leader in rushing yards for the Jayhawks. On down the list though there are players worthy of your attention that might just become the next league winner or rookie draft gem, some of my favorite other prospects being Harvey, Smith, and Martinez.
Don’t Sleep on the Tight Ends!
The tight end position can sometimes be an afterthought for fantasy managers, but this is definitely not the year to overlook the position. Even with the young talent all over the league at TE there are some exceptional players in this class that are worth your precious rookie picks. Tyler Warren from Penn State and Colston Loveland from Michigan are both routinely mocked in the first round but are sadly not playing in the Senior Bowl. The next few ranked TEs over on NFL Mock Draft Database are all headed to Mobile along with some others:
- Harold Fannin Jr., Bowling Green
- Mason Taylor, LSU
- Gunnar Helm, Texas
- Elijah Arroyo, Miami
- Terrance Ferguson, Oregon
- Jake Briningstool, Clemson
- Jackson Hawes, Georgia Tech
- Matavao Moliki, UCLA
- Gavin Bartholomew, Pitt
- Thomas Fidone II, Nebraska
- CJ Dippre, Alabama
One specific player whose draft capital could hinge on their Senior Bowl performance is Harold Fannin Jr.; Fannin’s competition this past season at Bowling Green was not the best, but he was absolutely dominant (check out 0:25 where he keeps soon-to-be top-10 pick at defensive end Abdul Carter off the edge). Fannin, 6-4 230, was the engine that ran the Falcons’ offense, accounting for almost 50% (!!!!!) of the team’s reception yards. He also somehow led the FBS in receptions (117) and yards (1,555) among all players, finishing above Heisman winner Travis Hunter and presumed WR1 Tetairoa McMillan. The Senior Bowl will offer a glimpse of Fannin’s ceiling against top competition; in a world where he dominates, as he did at Bowling Green, he will skyrocket up draft boards.
Mason Taylor and Gunnar Helm are also both comfortably sitting in the top 100 on the consensus BB. Taylor, 6-5 255, was highly productive at LSU; he started as a true freshman and will leave Baton Rouge as the all-time leader in receiving (1,308 yards) at tight end for the Tigers. Helm, 6-5 250, broke out later in his collegiate career – not uncommon for tight ends – with 60 receptions for 786 yards and 7 TDs this past season. Both players could attract attention this week in Mobile and could eventually climb into the 3rd round of rookie drafts this summer.
In a Weak Year, Could a Sr. Bowl Standout Emerge at WR?
While RB and TE are a strength of this class, WR is…. not. Tetairoa McMillan and Luther Burden III are the headliners and are being discussed in the tier below recent prospects like Malik Nabers or Rome Odunze, but they are both still good bets to go early in the 1st round.
In the late first round or early on day two, the board past them is a cluster including Ohio State’s Emeka Egbuka, Ole Miss’ Tre Harris, and Texas’ early declare receivers Isaiah Bond and Matthew Golden. After this group, 13 of the next 15 WRs on the Consensus Big Board have accepted invites to the senior bowl. I would bet that a Senior Bowl standout performance could vault a few of these players into the top of this group and maybe into the late 1st round. The full Senior Bowl WR group includes:
- Elic Ayomanor, Stanford
- Xavier Restrepo, Miami
- Jalen Royals, Utah State
- Jaylin Noel, Iowa State
- Jayden Higgins, Iowa State
- Savion Williams, TCU
- Jack Bech, TCU
- Tez Johnson, Oregon
- Pat Bryant, Illinois
- Tai Felton, Maryland
- Arian Smith, Georgia
- Chimere Dike, Florida
- Bru McCoy, Tennessee
- Kyle Williams, Washington State
- Jamaal Pritchett, South Alabama
It is not uncommon for a Senior Bowl standout to turn out as a late draft board climber or even a rookie league winner. Just recently Ladd McConkey and Jayden Reed both attracted the attention of scouts, GMs, and pundits alike with eye-catching practice reps and play against stiff competition. One player who is salivating at the thought of catching passes from a future NFL QB is Elic Ayomanor. Ayomanor, 6-2 210, is a do-it-all, physical receiver who did his best to produce in the Cardinals’ anemic offense, but he could really pop this week catching balls from Dart, Milroe, or Gabriel.
The Iowa State Cyclones are sending two players to Mobile this week, Jaylin Noel and Jayden Higgins. Higgins, 6-4 215, fits the mold of your prototypical long-levered X-Receiver, he is physical at the catch point and has surefire hands in traffic. Noel, 5-11 200, on the other hand, is speedier and can win in the slot or outside, and could turn heads with his explosive play potential. The last guy I’ll touch on is Jalen Royals, highly productive in the Mountain West for the Aggies but missed some time this year with a foot injury. Royals, 6-0 205, is one of the best all-around talents at receiver and if he can be productive in Mobile could solidify himself as another G5 Day 2 steal.
- 2025 Senior Bowl Preview: The Draft Starts In Mobile - January 27, 2025
- 2025 College Transfer Portal Update - January 11, 2025
