East-West Shrine Game Report

[fredtoast]

Savage, Lowery and Flacco looking to improve draft stock
McShay

By Todd McShay
Scouts Inc.
(Archive)
Insider

Updated: January 14, 2008

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The overall talent level of prospects attending the annual East-West Shrine Game has improved noticeably each of the past two years. WR Marques Colston (Saints), QB Tarvaris Jackson (Vikings), DB Danieal Manning (Bears), QB John Beck (Dolphins) and WR Jacoby Jones (Texans) are just a few of the standouts who improved their draft stock with strong showings.

And from the look of things, the upward trend in overall talent will continue in 2008. The following is a breakdown of the 10 most high-profile players -- five offensive, five defensive -- who must live up to the hype plus five players with the most at stake and five small-school standouts.

Five with the hype
Offense
[+] Enlarge
Dantrell Savage

Dennis Hubbard/Icon SMI

Dantrell Savage could improve his draft stock with a strong performance in the Shrine Game.
1. Allen Patrick, RB, Oklahoma (West)
Biggest pro: Straight-line burst/power
Biggest con: Lacks elusiveness
Draft projection: Fourth or fifth round

2. Dantrell Savage, RB, Oklahoma State (West)
Biggest pro: Shifty and versatile back
Biggest con: Undersized
Draft projection: Fifth or sixth round

3. Matt Flynn, QB, LSU (East)
Biggest pro: Dual-threat ability
Biggest con: Inexperience and questionable passing efficiency as a pocket passer
Draft projection: Fifth or sixth round

4. Jason Rivers, WR, Hawaii (West)
Biggest pro: Size, toughness, hands as possession receiver
Biggest con: Man-to-man separation skills
Draft projection: Seventh round

5. Sam Keller, QB, Nebraska (West)
Biggest pro: Competitive gunslinger-type passer
Biggest con: Durability
Draft projection: Sixth or seventh round

Others worth watching
Thomas Brown, RB, Georgia (East)
Cory Boyd, RB, South Carolina (East)
BenJarvus Green-Ellis, RB, Mississippi (East)
Anthony Morelli, QB, Penn State (East)
Paul Hubbard, WR, Wisconsin (East)

Defense
1. Bruce Davis, DE/OLB, UCLA (West)
Biggest pro: Pass rushing ability
Biggest con: Lacks DE size and inexperienced playing in space as an OLB
Draft projection: Second round

2. Robert James, OLB, Arizona State (West)
Biggest pro: Athleticism
Biggest con: Below-average size
Draft projection: Third round

3. Vincent Hall, ILB, Virginia Tech (East)
Biggest pro: Reads keys well, has strong build
Biggest con: Lacks top-end speed for the position
Draft projection: Third or fourth round

4. Trae Williams, CB, South Florida (East)
Biggest pro: Instincts/quickness
Biggest con: Lacks ideal size-speed combo
Draft projection: Third or fourth round

5. Frank Okam, DT, Texas (West)
Biggest pro: Natural feet for massive frame
Biggest con: Inconsistent
Draft projection: Third or fourth round

Others worth watching
Terrell Thomas, CB, USC (West)
Ezra Butler, OLB, Nevada (West)
Jonathan Goff, LB, Vanderbilt (East)
Jonathan Hefney, S, Tennessee (East)
Spencer Larson, ILB, Arizona (West)
Marcus Harrison, DL, Arkansas (East)
Dwight Lowery, CB, San Jose State (West)
J Leman, ILB, Illinois (East)
Jonathan Zenon, CB, LSU (East)
Josh Barrett, DS, Arizona State (West)

Five with plenty at stake
1. Tommy Blake, DE, TCU (West)
Biggest pro: Disruptive speed off the edge
Biggest con: Undisclosed medical ailment
Skill to prove: First-round talent is freefalling after missing significant playing time as a senior due to a medical leave of absence. Blake's long pre-draft process begins this week in Houston, where he must impress scouts with his play on the field and answer tough questions off of it.
Draft projection: Third round

2. Jo-Lonn Dunbar, LB, Boston College (East)
Biggest pro: Active, instinctive playmaker
Biggest con: Undersized
Skill to prove: Now that he's fully recovered from his ankle injury, is he able to overcome his lack of ideal size and speed to compete versus all-star level competition?
Draft projection: Fourth round

3. Zackary Bowman, CB, Nebraska (West)
Biggest pro: Size-speed ratio
Biggest con: Durability
Skill to prove: Talented but injury-riddled corner needs to wow scouts with his coverage skills during one-on-one drills.
Draft projection: Fourth or fifth round

4. Marcus Henry, WR, Kansas (West)
Biggest pro: Size
Biggest con: Lack of a second gear
Skill to prove: Can this late-rising prospect (1,014 receiving yards as a senior) consistently separate from man-to-man coverage versus more talented cornerbacks?
Draft projection: Fifth or sixth round

5. Paul Smith, QB, Tulsa (East)
Biggest pro: Passing efficiency
Biggest con: Marginal size
Skill to prove: This late addition to the roster must take advantage of the opportunity to prove to scouts that he can continue to overcome his size and arm-strength limitations versus higher level of competition.
Draft projection: Sixth or seventh round

Five small-school prospects
Joe Flacco

AP Photo/Pamela Kay Schmalenberger

Flacco's big arm will be on display at the Shrine Game.
1. Joe Flacco, QB, Delaware (East)
Biggest pro: Prototypical size/arm
Biggest con: Forcing throws
NFL comparison: Ben Roethlisberger, Steelers
Draft projection: Second or third round

2. Josh Johnson, QB, San Diego (West)
Biggest pro: Dual-threat ability
Biggest con: Fragile frame
NFL comparison Tarvaris Jackson, Vikings
Draft projection: Third or fourth round

3. Jerome Simpson, WR, Coastal Carolina (East)
Biggest pro: Natural playmaker
Biggest con: Lacks elite speed to stretch field vertically at next level
NFL comparison Patrick Crayton, Cowboys
Draft projection: Fifth or sixth round

4. Kendall Langford, DE, Hampton (East)
Biggest pro: Size/strength
Biggest con: Raw technique
NFL comparison Kenyon Coleman, Jets
Draft projection: Fifth or sixth round

5. Curtis Johnson, DE/OLB, Clark-Atlanta (East)
Biggest pro: Closing burst as an edge-rusher
Biggest con: Undersized
NFL comparison Trent Cole, Eagles
Draft projection: Sixth or seventh round

Todd McShay is the director of college football scouting for Scouts Inc. He has been evaluating prospects for the NFL draft since 1998.




*TOASTNOTES*

----Keep an eye on Arizona ILB Spencer Larsen. He was #4 in the nation in solo tackles, an Academic All American, and older than most prospects because he took off two years to do missionary work. I still believe that Brooks is our MLB, but if Larson runs well enough to play SAM then he is exactly the type of player Marvin should be looking to draft.

----Also Tennessee Safety Johnathan Hefney played like an All American his junior year. He has played both safety and CB and as a junior he was an explosive punt returner. However as a senior he didn't play up to his potential. He was healthy so I don't know what the problem was. personally i don't think we will draft a safety this year, but Hefney is an intriguing prospect.

[emfwhodey]

good stuff....interesting to see okam as a 3rd or 4th...i would love to get him in the third round...i could see us grapping ellis with the first pick, bruce davis in the second, snagging okam in the third and with our other third pick grap a linebacker like crabble from michigan (i'm not sure where he is going to get drafted)...talk about some serious improvements to the front seven