Another week of big games that put the best players in the country on a national stage. For some, they stepped up and continued to show the draft community that they are a valuable prospect. However, others who may have been thought highly of, disappointed.
Rising
Denzel Perryman (LB, Miami): The key to beating any SEC team is dominating them up front on both sides of the ball. Miami, whose defense has played quite poorly recently, benefited by a phenomenal game by their junior linebacker. While he is not the biggest linebacker, he used his quickness and intelligence to take down and out ball carrier after ball carrier. His productive and impactful day was a big part of Miami’s upset of Florida While he does not project to an inside linebacker, he looks like one hell of a weak side linebacker.
Dominique Easley (DL, Florida): Why not someone from the same game? Though the Gator offense played atrociously, the defense played up to their normal, dominant standard. A big reason for the their defensive success can be attributed to Easley embarrassing offensive lineman and getting pressure on almost every drop back as a pass rusher. As a run defender he pushed around blockers and was able to disengage and get to the ball carrier. He was a big part of containing the dynamic Duke Johnson. While he was thought of as a high talent before, it is evident that Easley could be pushing for a Top-15 selection.
Aaron Murray (QB, Georgia): I, famously, have been one of Aaron Murray’s biggest detractors over the past year. I thought he was physically limited with inconsistent poise and mental toughness. Well… Aaron Murray spent all of Saturday afternoon making me eat my words. He shredded what is to be believed as a very good South Carolina defense and he did it while making tough throws, moving outside the pocket and testing coverages. While he still has his issues, if he can continue to embarrass me and perform the way he did on Saturday, he could see his stock climb big time.
Falling
David Fales (QB, SJSU): I have been a big David Fales fan after the product he put on the field last year, but right now it looks like the honeymoon is over. Two weeks in a row, Fales has performed very poorly in a new offense and has failed to show that same accuracy and decision making from last year. He may be shaking off some rust in a new system, but he is really hurting himself early in the year.
Every Draft Prospect on the Texas Defense: This is a bit sweeping… But guys like Quandre Diggs, Jackson Jeffcoat, Carrington Byndom, and Jordan Hicks put on a horrifying display of defense. The pass defense played well, but that may have been due to BYU running for over 500 yards and not needing to pass the ball. Either players were not getting off blocks, missing tackles or straight up not being able to wrap up, it was a horrible display of defensive technique that would make a Pop Warner coach sick. While some may blame the coaches, when a player has as much talent as some of these guys and they can’t perform, that is a serious knock on the work ethic of the player.
Seantral Henderson (OT, Miami): A gifted as he is, Henderson is maddeningly inconsistent. The past two weeks he has really failed to be consistent in pass protection, poor footwork being his true downfall. Against Florida, he was abused snap to snap and contributed to the poor play by his offense. If Seantral wants to be a high pick, he needs to take advantage of his physical gifts and play like he can, not like he has.