3 Senior Bowl Tuesday Winners

MOBILE, Ala. — Practice for the 2023 Senior Bowl kicked off in Mobile, Alabama on Tuesday morning, marking the official start of the pre-draft process for dozens of NFL Draft-eligible players. All of the prospects here in Mobile get a great chance to show off what they’ve got against some of the other premier talent in their draft class in front of NFL scouts, coaches, and media. It’s an exciting time for us here at Draft Network as #DraftSzn really gets underway, and the first day of practice did not disappoint.

As tends to be the case with each event leading up to the draft, some players showed out better than others on day one. Of course, the first day wasn’t a make-or-break situation for any prospects, but first impressions are still important. These were the guys that made the strongest ones at the Senior Bowlers on Tuesday.

Dawand Jones OT, Ohio State

Jones started his time in Mobile clocking in with the longest wingspan in Senior Bowl history: 89.5 inches. And boy, did he take advantage of every inch in practice on Tuesday morning. The 6-foot-8, 375-pound tackle won just about every one-on-one rep he had during practice, clamping any and every defensive lineman that lined up across from him with his long arms, not allowing any forward momentum. Jones obviously already stands out from the crowd of fellow offensive linemen at the Senior Bowl with his frame, but his ability to use it effectively and win every rep only made him an even bigger standout in practice today.

Dawand Jones 👀💪#TheDraftStartsInMOBILE | #RatedRookie pic.twitter.com/pjwh00EveM

— The Draft Network (@TheDraftNetwork) January 31, 2023

Nathaniel “Tank” Dell WR, Houston

After measuring in at 5-foot-8 and 163 pounds, Dell was always going to have to use Senior Bowl practices this week as an opportunity to prove that his stature wouldn’t hold him back from being a playmaker. He did just that in his first day of practice on Tuesday afternoon. All day, the former Houston star was creating easy separation against some of this draft class’ top cornerbacks with his agility, speed, and excellent route-running. Further, he proved he can bail out his quarterback’s bad throws by using his sure hands to secure just about every pass that was within reach, even those that were well away from his frame.

Julius Brents CB, Kansas State

Brents was the cornerback that served as the American Team’s defensive foil to the standout performance from Dell in Tuesday’s practice. Against a talented bunch of receivers that included SMU’s Rashee Rice, Ole Miss’ Jonathan Mingo, and Dell, among others, Brents was locking each one of them down. He went stride-for-stride with even the biggest outside receivers on any deep routes in man coverage and showed off an excellent change-in-direction ability and phenomenal instincts while playing in zone. Brents clearly has a great feel for the game and will be able to show that off all week.

Kansas State CB Julius Brents shows off his tight coverage skills in 1-on-1s#RatedRookie pic.twitter.com/b2W9LUY8o4

— Jack McKessy (@jfmckessy) January 31, 2023