Shrine Bowl Practice Report: Day two created some separation
Jan 15, 2020, 6:44 AM
My favorite time of year is here! I’m in Tampa, Fla., for the 2020 East-West Shrine Bowl for the 14th year in a row. I call it the “All-Star Road Trip” and it’s where I get an on-field look at some of the best senior prospects coming into the NFL.
I’m always thinking about what’s next for the Broncos. Their scouting staff is here in Tampa as well to find players from this game who could contribute – perhaps even as future starters and stars in the NFL.
On Tuesday, practices for the Shrine Bowl continued with more coaches and scouts than the day before – even Raiders head coach Jon Gruden showed up! It was a fun day of practice where more information about these players was gathered.
Here is my day two practice report at the 2020 East-West Shrine Bowl.
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Repeat Performers
Rhode Island wide receiver Aaron Parker, Central Florida cornerback Nevelle Clarke and Michigan defensive end Michael Danna continued to build off their day-one performance.
After practice on Monday, I’m always curious to see if players who stood out on the first day can continue to shine. Multiple times in 14 years of traveling to this game, I’ve seen players who shine on Monday, but then never repeat that performance – and ultimately do next to nothing in the NFL. Tuesday is the day that prospects can really separate themselves from the other participants.
It was good to see that some of my standout players from Monday were able to continue impressing scouts in attendance at Tampa.
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Shaq Attack
Getting quality evaluation on inside linebackers at an all-star game is difficult because there is no live tackling in the drills. However, you can see natural athleticism in linebackers when they are dropping in coverage and reading a quarterback’s eyes.
Miami linebacker Shaquille Quarterman made sure to make an impact on Tuesday when tasked with covering tight ends or running backs in space. Quarterman measures in at 238 pounds and showed good burst to the ball when a pass was coming in. He got there quickly and showed a little bit of aggression that most don’t in practice. Quarterman would have an extra shove here and there to frustrate opponents. This ticked off some of the players he was covering, but scouts I talked to say they love that part of his game.
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Stokley 2.0
Making pro comparisons to college prospects is always an inexact science. No player is a true match of a player that came before him in the NFL, but comparisons do help football fans understand what a player plays like or what he could be at the pro level. On Tuesday, I found a Brandon Stokely-like player in Florida wide receiver Freddie Swain.
Watching Swain in practice, I see some of the same attributes that made Stokley a reliable pro for 15 years in the NFL. Like Stokley, Swain does a good job of catching passes over the middle of the field. Swain looks comfortable with chaos swirling around him and has strong hands to keep passes from being ripped away by defenders.
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Backs on Backers
One of the best and most telling drills at an all-star game is running backs versus linebackers. It’s a pass-protection drill that is mano y mano, with the best man winning in usually-decisive fashion. Most of the time in these all-star games, the linebackers are the ones who win more often as they get a running start at a running back awaiting their collision.
On Tuesday, Notre Dame running back Tony Jones showed that he was a force to be reckoned with. When defender after defender kept running at him full speed, Jones did a good job of stonewalling his opponent and protecting his quarterback. Jones is a hard-charging running back at 225 pounds, but during the last two days of practice, he has shown great ability as a pass-blocker and receiver out of the backfield.
These skills, in addition to what he can do as a runner, has certainly attracted the attention of NFL scouts – including scouts from the Broncos who have talked to him after practice here in Tampa.
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Miscellaneous Notes
Boise State wide receiver John Hightower showed incredible concentration during the West team practice on Tuesday afternoon. As he was running a sideline route, the cornerback covering him ripped off his helmet as the pass came in. Not only did Hightower catch the pass, but he made sure to get two feet inbounds, all while falling to the ground with no helmet and a defender all over him. It was one of those “ooh” plays that everyone in attendance notices.
Michigan offensive tackle Jon Runyan is not having the best week of practice. He is a huge player at 319 pounds but is not known as a power player. However, he is getting better with coaching after just two days. I’ve seen improvement in his punch and Runyan even showed a little nastiness in “the pit” on Tuesday. Runyan is a prospect with athleticism and potential, but he is raw. It’s good to see that he doesn’t give up after a bad play and he maintains his confidence while listening to coaches.
