Cleveland Browns Senior Bowl Preview: South Roster

The Senior Bowl provides a great opportunity for teams to meet and evaluate draft prospects through a week of practice. Looking at possible fits for the Cleveland Browns on the South Team’s roster.

The Cleveland Browns were given the opportunity to coach the Senior Bowl because they finished with the worst record in the league and didn’t purge their coaching staff. Well, at least they didn’t do so until after they accepted the opportunity to coach this game.

The staff led by Hue Jackson will be coaching the South Team in this event and getting to put through this roster through practices for the week, which is a huge advantage in terms of scouting those players. They get to see how they respond to coaching and how they implement and adapt over the course of the week.

So with that in mind, here are some players that stand out on the South roster that could interest the Browns in the upcoming 2017 NFL Draft.

Offense

The offense is not as good as the defense, but there are still some notable players that could be attractive to the Browns.

Davis Webb, QB – Cal: Webb looks the part in terms of his size and the offense he led this year was actually more productive than Jared Goff, the top-overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft. Having played in that same Bear Raid Offense, Webb will be tasked with taking snaps under center and running a more pro-style offense.

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Joshua Dobbs, QB – Tennessee: Dobbs was a highly touted recruit who was good for the Volunteers, including a 3-0 bowl record, but never quite lived up to the expectations of bringing the Vols back to their place among SEC royalty. He has a good deal of talent as a dual threat and an extremely accomplished academic. It’s possible his best football is still ahead of him.

Taywan Taylor, WR – Western Kentucky: Taylor is raw, but has terrific athletic ability and put up enormous numbers for the Hilltoppers. If the Browns want to take another late-round flyer on a project receiver with a ton of upside like they did with Ricardo Louis, Taylor fits the bill.

Fred Ross, WR – Mississippi State: Dak Prescott’s top target had another big year while Prescott was having an outstanding rookie NFL season. Ross is a receiver with good size for the position and is unheralded in this class.

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O.J. Howard, TE – Alabama: Howard appears to be the favorite to be the highest player selected in the upcoming draft from this event. He has shown to be a tremendous blocker and should excel in this environment, but this gives give him every opportunity to showcase his ability to make plays as a receiver, which was lacking during his time in Tuscaloosa.

Gerald Everett, TE – South Alabama: The event is taking place in Everett’s home stadium and he is one of the best receiving tight ends in the class. He’s worth mentioning because he should perform well this week, but is probably redundant with Seth DeValve on the Browns roster.

Ethan Pocic, C – LSU: For people desperate to replace Cam Erving, this may be the best hope. Pocic is extremely tall for the position, but he’s a good bender and a terrific center. He has the added versatility in that he might be able to play all five spots on the line, having played both guard and center for LSU.

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Nico Siragusa, OG – San Diego State: If the Browns want to add a mauling right guard, Siragusa fits the bill. This event will be a great test for him, especially in the pit drills as he will be at a significant disadvantage in the pit drill. If he can show well there in pass protection, it will be a great week for him.

Defense

The defense is really impressive this year and the Browns could revisit a number of these players when they make their draft decisions in April.

Jordan Willis, DE – Kansas State: Willis was one of the most productive pass rushers in the country. He shows good technique, has a wide body and athleticism. The Big 12 has some reasonable questions about how good the right tackle play was, but Willis should have a good week here.

Keionta Davis, DE – Chattanooga: One of a few FCS standouts on the defensive line, Davis had a great season for the Mocs and was part of a defense that flustered Alabama for about a half. He will have a chance to showcase his ability against better talent.

Tanoh Kpassagnon, DE – Villanova: Huge body and sky-high production, Kpassagnon might remind some of Courtney Brown. He’s enormous, he makes a ton of plays and he’s somewhat reserved. While some players go to FCS for less than ideal reasons, Kpassagnon went to Villanova because of his academic achievements and is a brilliant student. He may not fit in Gregg Williams’ defense as much as he might have in Ray Horton’s, but he can play up and down the line.

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Carlos Watkins, DT – Clemson: There’s a good chance that he’ll be the star of the show among the defensive linemen regardless of the team this year. A natural 3-technique, Watkins led Clemson in sacks this past season and could really give opponents problems in pass rushing drills.

Tanzel Smart, DT – Tulane: Early favorite for the bad body, good player award. Smart looks sloppy, then the play starts and he’s flying around and making plays. He’s wide enough to clog up blockers, but finds opportunities to explode to the football both against the run and rushing the passer. He’s a 3-tech who could play some reps at the nose.

Montravius Adams, DT – Auburn: Adams is another one that probably fit better with Horton as defensive coordinator. He’s a natural clogger, but has the ability to make athletic plays and rush the passer. The issue for Adams is he has all the talent in the world, but has awful habits. He’ll stop feet on contact and lean on guys as well as take himself out of plays. When he’s right, he’s disruptive.

Eddie Vanderdoes, DT – UCLA: A similar boat as Adams, but Vanderdoes also suffered a significant injury last year and wasn’t healthy for this season. If he’s healthy for this week, he could really surprise people and help himself at the same time. He showed substantial talent and promise as a sophomore.

Tre’Davious White, CB – LSU: White should come out of this having shown he’s the best corner that attended. He has terrific athleticism and fluidity that allow him to be a great cover corner. Outside of measuring in at what he’s listed or close to it and showing better ball skills, White just needs to do what he’s done all year in coverage.

Cam Sutton, CB – Tennessee: Sutton came into the season as one of the most promising corners in the country. Unfortunately, he missed a portion of the season with an ankle injury. He should be 100 percent healthy now and that could help enable him to have a great week and rehab some of his stock.

Damontae Kazee, CB – San Diego State: One of the more underrated corners in the class, Kazee gets to showcase his ability against better competition. He was dominant this year in the Mountain West, helping the Aztecs win their conference.

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Corn Elder, CB – Miami (FL): Elder has good man-cover skills. The question with Elder is largely about physicality. He won’t be asked to tackle anyone, but it will be important to see if he can deal with receivers who are physical running routes against him.

Justin Evans, S – Texas A&M: In a class headlined by underclassmen, Evans has a chance to be the top-ranked senior free safety. This event will enable him to show how much he can offer in man coverage against both receivers and tight ends.

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