The first day of Tropical Bowl practice (day three of the entire event) went very well, with practices being held at Celebration High School in Celebration, Florida. Over 150 professional football prospects took to the field in front of several NFL teams,
The NFL teams that I’ve spotted so far include;
- Atlanta Falcons
- Baltimore Ravens
- Carolina Panthers
- Chicago Bears
- Cincinnati Bengals
- Dallas Cowboys
- Denver Broncos
- Green Bay Packers
- Indianapolis Colts
- Jacksonville Jaguars
- Los Angeles Rams
- Las Vegas Raiders
- Miami Dolphins
- Minnesota Vikings
- New England Patriots
- New Orleans Saints
- Philadelphia Eagles
- Pittsburgh Steelers
- San Francisco 49ers
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Tennessee Titans
Let’s get into the NFL notes so far;
American team notes
On the American Team (blue) that took to the field first;
- Florida State tight end Camren McDonald looked the part – making a few tough, contested catches and showing some ability to break through routes effectively. He has the body, measuring in at
- Several scouts were impressed by the leg of Akron punter Noah Gettman, who flashed good placement and strength with his leg during practice today. Charlotte kicker Antonio Zita also had a good day, knocking through a 58-yard field goal in practice and overall remaining accurate. A lot of that success had to do with his college teammate, Cam Lyons, who did an outstanding job as a long snapper.
- San Diego State defensive end Keshawn Banks stood out for the most part, playing well through his 1v1 opportunities and overall showing a good step and getting off with relative ease. A lot of NFL eyes are on him right now.
- Some lower-level coaches (USFL, CFL) and scouts are very excited about Hawaii offensive tackle Micah Vanterpool who moved up to the next game from the scrimmage earlier this week. NFL teams like him, he has an NFL body, but he could be a star going down to the lower levels of football.
- James Madison defensive end Jamaire Edwards did not practice as he waits for his equipment to arrive.
National team notes
On the National Team (black) that took to the practice field second;
- Dax Hollifield, as I reported on Twitter, is the player that everyone is talking about on the sideline. The former Virginia Tech linebacker was always an instinctive player on tape, but scouts were impressed with his athleticism, which seemed to be a step faster.
- Florida State wide receiver Ontaria Wilson made some plays today, showing a lot of twitch and elusiveness than people were expecting to see. He can return punts too – which gives him a chance to make a roster in the NFL, but most likely will be starting on a practice squad.
- Several teams were impressed with the size that Vanderbilt safety Maxwell Worship showed on the field, along with his athletic ability and hard, physical style. Worship told me that he is around 6% body fat, and looked great in weigh-ins today.
- CFL teams were impressed with Utah State quarterback Logan Bonner. While Bonner is an NFL reject, he could seriously make a good career for himself up north.
- Oklahoma safety Justin Broiles couldn’t keep his mouth shut, constantly talking smack and grating on several scouts’ nerves. Broiles is a bit undersized but is a scrappy player on the backend.
- Miami (OH) wide receiver Mac Hippenhammer made some good plays in practice today, but definitely showed that he wasn’t out of his element.
- Several NFL teams were very interested in Ole Miss linebacker Otis Reese Jr, who looks every part of an NFL ROVER safety. While Reese played a lot of snaps at linebacker today, everyone knows where they would like to place him.
