Another Senior Bowl is in the books, as the South Team was able to hold off the North Team for the 16-15 victory. While the outcome of the game doesn't hold much significance, each team gave it all they had as the players showcased their talent one final time before the NFL Combine. Following Saturday's competition; here are five takeaways from 2017 Senior Bowl.
**The play of Cal quarterback Davis Webb.
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The Bay Area local had a quality performance for the South, as he completed 11 of 16 pass attempts for 165 yards and one touchdown, en route to earning the Reese's Most Valuable Player award for the game. Webb showed poise in the pocket, and his touchdown pass was a well-placed dime over the top to Texas A&M wide receiver Josh Reynolds as he ran down the sideline for the score. In 2016, the Prosper, Texas-native finished his season with the Golden Bears throwing for 4,295 passing yards, 37 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions. After accepting his award, Webb stated that his attention will now shift to preparing for the combine, similar to many other players.
Eastern Carolina wide receiver Zay Jones could be a nice weapon in the NFL.
At 6'1" and 185 pounds, Jones might not be your prototypical wide receiver, but he shows great strength and good hands. For the North, the wideout flashed a lot of skill with several impressive catches; he finished the day with six receptions for 68 yards and a touchdown. Jones' day could've been much more impactful too had a would-be touchdown not been called back because of a flag, and if the officiating crew was able to review his absurd toe-tap snag in the back of the end zone.
Jones showed great awareness on that play and could've easily found himself on a SportsCenter Top 10 play had it been called a touchdown. He was arguably the most impactful player on offense for the North and certainly left a good impression in his final college game.
Tight end O.J. Howard was exactly who everyone thought he was.
Howard wasn't in the game for very long, but during his time on the field he showed exactly why analysts have pegged him as a potential first round talent. For someone who towers at 6'6" and 242 pounds, the Alabama-product has an immense amount of speed and agility. Howard's dual-threat skill set as a solid run-blocker and playmaker in the passing game has established him as the premier tight end in this draft class.
Turnovers were present throughout the entirety of the game.
Although the South Team was able to walk away with the victory, the four turnovers on offense hindered what could've been a more productive outing. The benefactor of those turnovers was Saint Francis free safety Lorenzo Jerome who finished the day with a pair of interceptions and a forced fumble. Jerome has a ball hawk characteristic about him, and as a member of the Red Flash he finished with 18 career interceptions.
Overall, this game showed that there's a lot of talent entering the 2017 NFL Draft.
No matter where you looked on Saturday, whether it was on offense or defense, there were playmakers all over the field. From start to finish it was an entertaining game that was competitive and featured some highlight reel plays. Fortunately, no one was seriously injured during the bout between the two teams and at the end of the day, it was a close finish.
