NEWSLETTER
In the pantheon of immediate Chicago Bears needs, you could argue that the top two are at quarterback and in the secondary. It’s worth, then, spending a little extra time discussing the performances from those groups in yesterday’s game.
All week, we heard about Pitt QB Nathan Peterman’s good week of practice, and he was rewarded in the Senior Bowl with the most reps for the John Fox-led North team.
According to Pro Football Focus’ grades, Peterman (68.3) was indeed the best of the North’s quarterbacks, so, at least in that regard, it all checks out. There are still questions about whether he’s a future NFL starter, but it was a good week for Peterman. At CBS, he’s currently ranked the 6th best quarterback in the draft, and projected to go in the 4th round.
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The young man just behind Peterman in those rankings was actually the game’s MVP. Cal QB Davis Webb showed off a big arm with some touch en route to producing a 73.9 rating – the best among Senior Bowl quarterbacks. Joshua Dobbs from Tennessee posted a 71.5 rating, which was the second best among quarterbacks.
Webb’s arm is worth closer inspection:
Fred Ross beats Ezra Robinson to the corner and Davis Webb drops a dime for the beautiful TD on the final play of South practice #SeniorBowl pic.twitter.com/hIqlgIY23K
— Draft Analyst (@DraftAnalyst1) January 26, 2017
https://twitter.com/FanSportsClips/status/825457772674183168
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Of course, they weren’t all great throws for Webb, who is still a work in progress:
Josh Reynolds. Nice route. Davis Webb overthrow pic.twitter.com/w6aFWaICNC
— Los Cachorros NCAAF (@CachorrosNCAAF) January 28, 2017
On the defensive side of the ball, the Hue-Jackson coached South team (with Gregg Williams (of Bountygate fame) as its defensive coordinator)) was led not by its secondary, but by its front seven, per PFF’s grading scale. Two edge rushers, two linebackers, and an interior defensive lineman came out with the highest defensive grades on the team.
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The North team, by contrast was led by the kind of defensive secondary play that Fox and defensive coordinator Vic Fangio wish they could package up and take back with them to Chicago. The group even forced five turnovers.
Safeties Lorenzo Jerome (85.0) and Obi Melifonwu (80.8) were the top-graded defensive players for the North. Melifonwu showed off play-making skills with solid tackling in the running game, while Jerome displayed ball-hawk skills with two interceptions. You can bet that the Bears’ scouts and coaching staff were observing closely, given their significant needs at safety. Melifonwu is ranked by CBS as the third best strong safety in the draft (round 2 or 3 type pick), behind only LSU’s Jamal Adams and Michigan’s Jabrill Peppers, and Jerome is ranked sixth (round 4 or 5 type pick).
For more on the Senior Bowl, catch up on the breakout wide receiver performance from the game, as well as more notes from the week at the Senior Bowl in this morning’s Bullets.
Brett Taylor contributed to this post.
