The Reese’s Senior Bowl is a great way to showcase one’s skills compared to that of their peers. Every year the best eligible players around the country gather to compete to elevate their NFL Draft stock over one another. This year, the Senior Bowl linebackers are a diverse group looking to prove that they belong at the next level. And some will be looking to prove they can start there.
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Context of the LB competition at the Senior Bowl
This is a difficult task because of the variety of players involved in the competition. Ohio State’s Baron Browning is a different player than the likes of Oregon State’s Hamilcar Rashed Jr. Some of these players were more primary pass rushers in school, while others flourished in coverage.
The Senior Bowl does an excellent job of showcasing that wide range of talents. Linebackers will go through pass-rush drills and one-on-ones, and they will do the same for defending the pass. They will also be put through the gauntlet in nine-on-seven run looks. However, which of the Senior Bowl linebackers stand above the rest?
Ranking the top linebackers at the Senior Bowl — National Team
Baron Browning, Ohio State
He was a 5-star recruit with all the physical talent in the world. However, it never really clicked for Baron Browning at Ohio State until this season. His ability to process defensive blocking schemes helped in that journey. Before, he’d miss on plays simply because he was a tick late diagnosing the play. Even great physical ability is no use when reacting painfully late.
Yet, this athletic phenom worked on his craft, and it showed in his tape from this season, which culminated in an outstanding playoff run for the linebacker. He’s the perfect mold of an NFL WILL linebacker at 6’3″, 250 pounds. However, even playing that heavy, he has no issues athletically in coverage, which will bode well for his projection to the next level. The Senior Bowl linebackers group got a big win with his invitation acceptance.
Chazz Surratt, North Carolina
The young man was runner-up for Defensive Player of the Year in his first year playing the position. That isn’t a local district award, either. No, Chazz Surratt did that in 2019, in the ACC!
When he arrived at Chapel Hill, he was a quarterback recruit before flipping to the defensive side of the ball. 2019 showed he had all the athletic ability in the world to play the position at a high level. Well, in 2020, he continued along that path with the mental side of the game. Surratt now has a better understanding of his assignment, and his trigger has improved. Of the linebackers’ group at the Senior Bowl, Surratt might be the most intriguing of the bunch.
Hamilcar Rashed Jr., Oregon State
The young man is, or was, a pass rusher at Oregon State. He put up bonkers numbers in his junior campaign. He sacked the quarterback 14 times in 2019. Hamilcar Rashed Jr. also amassed 22.5 tackles for loss, giving him an outstanding production profile for the analytics heads. That’s far more than any other Senior Bowl linebackers.
Despite that production, his sleek athleticism and bend can only take him so far as a primary pass rusher. He’s too slim to hold up down-to-down on the edge. So, unless he can add a few 10-pound dumbbells to his frame, he’s transitioning to WILL. If he can show survival skills here at the Senior Bowl, there’s a good chance he can regain some of the draft stock he lost in the past 12 months.
Ranking the top linebackers at the Senior Bowl — American Team
Jabril Cox, LSU
After transferring to LSU from North Dakota State, Jabril Cox showed he could hang with the SEC’s physicality. As a result, things didn’t always go smoothly for one of the Senior Bowl linebackers’ best coverage defenders, but he fought tooth and nail to improve his craft.
Cox played a lot in the slot at NDSU. He often played (and is comfortable) on an island in coverage. Cox is the modern NFL linebacker in a passing league. He needs to become more consistent as a run defender before being effective at the next level. Seeing how he processes inside the box during team drills and how he holds up physically could go a long way toward improving his draft stock come April.
Monty Rice, Georgia
Of the Senior Bowl linebackers group, Rice is the biggest boom or bust of the top names. The former 4-star prospect has all the athletic traits one could ever want for the position. Rice possesses outstanding athleticism and an ability to cover backs in man and underneath routes in zone. He’s explosive in short areas, and his more compact frame allows him to change directions effortlessly.
However, he struggles with the finer details of the position. He is very much a see ball, hit ball player. He can get turned around by motion and misdirection too often. And his length is a problem when he gets chest-to-chest with blockers. However, if the shakiest of the top Senior Bowl linebackers can show improvements there at Mobile, then there is a chance he sneaks in as a top-100 pick come April.
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