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2019 Senior Bowl stock report: Winners and Losers from Saturday’s game

Time to take stock of the Senior Bowl prospects and who helped and hurt themselves in the game.

NCAA Football: Senior Bowl John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports

The 2019 Reese’s Senior Bowl has wrapped up and it’s time to take a look at who helped or hurt their stock in terms of the NFL Draft and the Detroit Lions. This is based solely on how I viewed the game and entirely within the confines of “how this helps the Lions”, so it’ll look similar to how our stock reports did in the season. Note that this means some players who did well or poorly may not be mentioned at all, since I may not feel it moves the needle as far as the Lions are concerned. And in that vein, let’s dive right in.

Stock Up: Charles Omenihu, DE, Texas

Omenihu had a rough opening series and after some long internal conversations hyping him up I was worried we were going to see him flop. He bounced back quickly and convincingly, though, and he should have cemented his likely Day 2 status going into NFL Combine prep. Omenihu started the second half with even more fire, forcing a fumble and turnover. Assignment sound and aggressive as a rusher, Omenihu is a name to watch going forward.

Stock Down: Zach Allen, DE, Boston College

Tied to the Lions due to Paul Pasqualoni’s presence, Zach Allen is likely to be a hot name up until the Combine. Senior Bowl practices were really rough, however, and Allen was routinely beaten up by big named blockers and guys with far less prominent profiles as well. This carried over into the game, and he was essentially a complete non factor both against the pass and against the run. Add in that his most notable statistic was a penalty, it’s not great. Projected to have poor measurements at the Combine, this is likely the beginning of a big drop for Allen.

Stock Up: Khalen Saunders, DT, Western Illinois

Saunders received a lot of press during the week for leaving after his baby was born and then returning, but the post Senior Bowl conversation will be all about his play on the field. Saunders is billed as a top-tier athlete, and the traits he displayed in the game seem to back that up. Disruptive and explosive, Saunders will be tough to ignore during the draft process despite his small-school billing.

Stock Down: Kris Boyd, CB, Texas

Boyd had a very strong 2017 that left many thinking he was going to push up into Day 1 from his previous Day 2 billing. 2018 was pretty awful from him overall, and he was abused fairly routinely during the year. This would continue in the Senior Bowl, and in only two series he committed three penalties, which isn’t exactly how you want your biggest job interview to go. The Lions are looking to improve their secondary in 2019 and a guy that reckless with his hands likely isn’t it.

Quick Hits

Stock Up

Jakobi Meyers, WR, NC State: Myers seemed favored by the Lions staff, and he had an overall good game on offense and special teams.

Keelan Doss, WR, UC-Davis: Doss isn’t very well known, but he’s been very productive and had a strong Senior Bowl showing.

Andy Isabella, WR, Massachusetts: Isabella had an up and down week, but his upside is undeniable. The speedster showed his versatility with some gimmick plays, but also showcased both strong hands and good route running out of the slot during the game.

Chuma Edoga, OT, Southern California: After a very strong week, Edoga had a very strong game. The Lions aren’t as in need of a tackle as other positions, but the value may be enticing outside of the first round.

Kingsley Keke, DT, Texas A&M: Keke had very little fanfare throughout the week, but he had a great game, showing a ton of disruption on nearly every play.

Drew Sample, TE, Washington: Sample is one of the lesser known names in a crowded, stacked tight end class, but he had a fine showing in the Senior Bowl. The Lions should be in on every tight end in this class, so I expect him to get a look.

Jaylon Ferguson, OLB, Louisiana Tech: Ferguson had a prolific college career, but has a fair share of doubters. He gave both them and his fans something in this game, but I think he turned out looking better as the game went on.

Foster Moreau, TE, Louisiana State: Moreau has been a bit of a sleeper in this strong tight end class, but he was able to show some of why he could be a riser.

Tyree Jackson, QB, Buffalo: Jackson has everything you want from a developmental quarterback and was able to show all of that off in the Senior Bowl.

Gary Jennings, WR, West Virginia: Jennings never played with Tyree Jackson, but the two shared a connection on the field that ultimately helped both.

Andre Dillard, OT, Washington State: I’m not sure Dillard will go on Day 1 due to the scheme he came from and how tough that projection is, but he’s done nothing but raise his stock in Senior Bowl week up to and including the game.

Garrett Bradbury, OC, North Carolina State: The Lions aren’t likely in the market for another center, but they drafted Frank Ragnow and moved him to guard, so it’s possible they do so again. Bradbury was a terror throughout the game, and aside from one miscue had a great game.

Wes Hills, RB, Slippery Rock: Hills came into the week relatively unheralded, but he showed some good vision and speed early in the game and is one I think deserves a more in depth look.

Stock Down

Gardner Minshew, QB, Washington State: Minshew pretty much crapped the bed with his play after an up and down week of practices. Lions still need a backup, but not a wildly inaccurate and jumpy one.

Oshane Ximines, DE, Old Dominion: Ximines has a lot of fans in the draft community, but his Senior Bowl didn’t quite go as he likely hoped. Was a pretty rough outing.

Isaiah Buggs, DT, Alabama: Buggs measured in far smaller than listed in college and had a tough week of practices. That continued in game and he was washed out fairly routinely.

Rock Ya-Sin, CB, Temple: Ya-Sin had a lot of hype coming into the game, but wasn’t able to show a lot of positives in the game. He was picked on pretty often.

Darrin Hall, RB, Pittsburgh: Hall didn’t get many opportunities, but the few he had were far less than impressive, ending the game with only a handful of yards.

Karan Higdon, RB, Michigan: Higdon was a workhorse for Michigan, but he didn’t show much in this one.

Penny Hart, WR, Georgia State: Hart had a very good week of practices, but disappeared in the game.

Renell Wren, DT, Arizona State: Wren is billed as a crazy good athlete, but the production never really lined up. I kept trying to find him in this one, and I saw him enough to know he played, but never when someone was making a play.

What do you think? Was there anyone I missed? Do you disagree with how I assessed each player as it regards the Lions? Let me know in the comments.

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