Stock Report: USF’s Quinton Flowers has NFL skills
— By Dane Brugler, NFLDraftScout.com —
A look at NFL prospects who helped and may have hurt themselves this past weekend:
Who helped themselves?
Quinton Flowers, QB/RB, South Florida, SR. (6-0, 210, 4.54, #9)
In one of the more exciting games over Thanksgiving weekend, UCF beat South Florida 49-42 in a thrilling back-and-forth contest that showcased two talented quarterbacks. Despite the loss, Flowers impressed with school records for total yards (605) and passing yards (503), also accounting for five touchdowns (four passing, one rushing).
As a passer, he has a strong arm, uncorking several explosive plays through the air. But like much of the season, his inconsistent throwing mechanics and scatter-shot accuracy led to several misses. He finished below 60-percent completions for the 10th time in 12 games this season, which is not a fluke when you watch the tape.
Where Flowers really impresses NFL scouts is with his athleticism with the ball in his hands, forcing poor pursuit angles with his burst and using his toughness to run through arm tackles. Flowers, who has been invited to the East-West Shrine Game, is expected to work out at running back and wide receiver throughout the draft process and could be drafted based on how he does at those new positions, similar to Denard Robinson (2013 fifth-rounder) or Keenan Reynolds (2016 sixth-rounder).
Tremaine Edmunds, LB, Virginia Tech, JR. (6-4, 245, 4.82, #49)
Virginia’s Micah Kiser is a smart, productive thumper who will play on Sundays, but with all due respect to him, the best NFL linebacker prospect in the Commonwealth Cup was Virginia Tech’s Edmunds. He finished with nine tackles, including three for loss and a pair of sacks as the Hokies defense held the Cavaliers to under 200 total yards.
Edmunds is a terrific athlete, especially for his size, but what truly stands out about his game is his ability to quickly diagnose the play. His reads consistently put him position to make plays, showing off the closing burst and finishing skills to disrupt the play design in its infancy.
Edmunds needs to do a better job using his length and hands to work off blockers once he reaches the next level, but his athleticism, awareness and tackling ability are NFL starter worthy.
Jordan Wilkins, RB, Ole Miss, rSR. (6-1, 215, 4.59, #22)
The SEC regular season concluded with six 1,000-yard rushers, including Wilkins, becoming the first Ole Miss player to hit that mark since Dexter McCluster in 2009. After a sluggish start to the season, the senior finished with three straight 100-yard rushing performances, including 110 yards and two touchdowns in the Rebels’ 31-28 win over Mississippi State in the Egg Bowl.
Wilkins missed last season due to academic issues but worked his way back to the top of the depth chart this season, posting 1,011 yards on 155 carries (6.5-yard average) and nine touchdowns. On tape, Wilkins shows a natural understanding of run angles to scan the field, pick his lane and maximize each run. Although his elusiveness is average at best, he transitions his momentum very well in his cuts to make sharp moves without gearing down, attacking with a head of steam.
A three-down player for Ole Miss, Wilkins has some technique issues in pass protection, but he is a tough, willing blocker and boasts soft hands as a receiver to snare throws away from his chest. Overall, he projects as a poor man’s Ryan Mathews with his body type and cutting ability, having a chance to work his way into the later rounds of the draft.
Deadrin Senat, DT, South Florida, rSR. (6-1, 305, 5.12, #10)
South Florida is known for its productive offense, but Charlie Strong’s Bulls also rank No. 1 in the American Athletic Conference in total defense, which is anchored by Senat, one of the better senior defensive line prospects in the country.
Senat, who lines up predominantly as the zero- or one-technique, ranks second on the team in tackles (61) and was at his best against UCF on Saturday. He displays the powerful upper body and hand strength to snatch and dispose of blockers, clearing the rush lane for his teammates or himself to penetrate the backfield.
Senat, who has a 675-pound squat, is very strong, but he is also rangy and uses his low hips and core strength to leverage gaps, making tight turns to close on the football. As a pass rusher, he uses his reach to lean into blocks to create movement while keeping himself clean, forcing the quarterback to move his feet.
For a player who plays a ton of snaps, Senat competes with a steady motor and rarely takes plays off. For an NFL team looking to add interior defensive line depth in the middle rounds, Senat is worth targeting.
Who hurt themselves?
Andrew Brown, DL, Virginia, SR. (6-4, 280, 4.93, #9)
If this year’s draft class has a Malik McDowell-type of prospect, that distinction might belong to Brown for his immense talent, but streaky production and lack of maturity. A former five-star recruit and Chesapeake native, Brown stayed home to help turn the program around, and while Virginia will play in a bowl game for the first time since 2011, it has been an up-and-down season for him. Both the ups and the downs were on display against Virginia Tech.
Brown has an impressive combination of size, strength and athleticism and moves with twitch in his muscles to change directions and play in space. However, he is still trying to use all his strengths as a player in conjunction to be effective. Brown plays with questionable gap integrity, discipline and overall vision, relying more on natural skill than technique and awareness.
And his maturity has also been a concern for scouts, which was illustrated against the Hokies in the fourth quarter when he found himself in an unneeded scuffle post whistle, striking an official in the process. With his team fighting for a win, Brown was correctly ejected from the game.
When he plays up to his potential, he looks like a future first-round pick, but there is little consistency or discipline to his game, which will be a cement block attached to his draft stock.
Other notes:
–Averaging almost 30 offensive touches per game since becoming the featured back in September, Auburn junior RB Kerryon Johnson (5-11, 212, 4.45, #21) has proven to be a productive workhorse and the MVP of the SEC West champs. He became just the 13th player to rush for 100-plus yards against Alabama during Nick Saban’s tenure as head coach, but the punishment of the position caught up with him in the fourth quarter when he exited with a right shoulder injury on his 30th carry of the game. He is a proven tough guy, but his status for the SEC Championship Game is very much up in the air.
–San Jose State junior LB Frank Ginda (6-0, 244, 4.80, #5) made it official on Saturday, announcing his intention to declare early for the 2018 NFL Draft. A three-year starter, Ginda leads the FBS this season with 173 total tackles, including 94 solo stops.
–With five touchdowns against Arkansas on Friday, Missouri junior QB Drew Lock (6-3, 225, 4.79, #3) set an SEC single-season record with 43 passing touchdowns, finishing the regular season with a 43-to-12 touchdown-to-interception ratio. Lock has registered only 58.2-percent completions this season and he is still very raw mentally, but he has top-tier physical traits with his size and arm talent. Although he should return for his senior season, Lock is one quarterback prospect who could shake up the draft rankings if he declares early.
–Following up one of his best performances of the season, albeit in a loss to USC, UCLA junior QB Josh Rosen (6-3, 220, 4.97, #3) was pulled from Friday’s game at halftime after he took a physical hit in the second quarter. Interim head coach Jedd Fisch said Rosen was removed for precautionary reasons, which was probably the right decision to keep the quarterback healthy for the bowl game and the pre-draft process. However, it won’t help defuse the injury concerns attached to his NFL scouting report.
–Mississippi State redshirt junior QB Nick Fitzgerald (6-4, 227, 4.68, #7) suffered a gruesome dislocated ankle in the Egg Bowl on Thanksgiving night and underwent surgery on Friday. He will be sidelined for the next few months from football activities, which many assumed would keep him from leaving school early for the NFL Draft. But with Dan Mullen accepting the head coach job at Florida, rumors circulated that Fitzgerald might look to leave as well. However, he put that gossip to rest on Sunday, tweeting “I am very excited to be able to lead this team to a new level next season!”
–Miami (Fla.) senior TE Christopher Herndon (6-4, 254, 4.78, #23) suffered a MCL injury to his left knee during the game on Friday and will require surgery, ending his season. This injury puts his status for the pre-draft process in jeopardy, including the 2018 Senior Bowl. Herndon is a projected mid-round pick who had top-100 potential.
–Dane Brugler is a Senior Analyst for NFLDraftScout.com, a collaboration between The Sports Xchange and Pro Football Hall of Fame.
