The American squad saw seven players invited to the NFL Combine and the National team sent 11 players to the event. That means that a combined 18 players were invited to the NFL Combine who participated in the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl which is a record for the Carson, California based all-star game.
1.) Brandon Dixon, Cornerback (Northwest Missouri State)
Notes: A productive and opportunistic cornerback at Northwest Missouri State (Division II) for the last two years. He was one of the top pass breakup defensive backs for the Bearcats in recent memory. He registered a 5.15 grade at the Combine, which means that he could make a roster with hard work as he will be coming in as a backup cornerback who will have to kill it on special teams to get a chance in the NFL. At this point he is strictly a cover corner who needs work on his tackling and run defense (albeit NFL defensive backs these days aren’t asked to be intermediate area/shallow area run defenders anyway).
2.) Jabari Price, Cornerback, (North Carolina)
Notes: Price will always get his foot in the door because of his speed and solid cover skills. Price will never be the type of guy who leads the cornerback core of his NFL team in tackles because he’s not a natural run defender, but as mentioned before he is a cover man with very good speed. His 4.95 grade at the Combine suggests that he will have to get in the weight room to get more muscular, gain some weight, and improve his cover skills to make an NFL roster.
3.) Jeremiah George, Inside Linebacker (Iowa State)
2014 NFLPA Collegiate Bowl
Photo By Desiree Astorga
Notes: Quiet as kept, but George might be the best prospect to come out of this year’s NFLPA Collegiate Bowl. The fact that he was given a 5.18 grade at the Combine doesn’t even tell the whole story of his potential. Yes, he isn’t the biggest linebacker in the world at 5 feet 11 and 234 pounds, but George can play. He doesn’t shy away from contact or much bigger offensive linemen that are assigned to block him. He likes to make plays and plays faster than his timed speed (4.91 in the 40). He also tied for the highest reps among the linebackers (28) for bench presses of 225 pounds; and if that is something to ponder also understand that there were 34 other linebackers invited to the Combine.
George could be a heck of a kickoff and punt team maven who could someday work his way into the rotation of a 3-4 defense where he is asked to be a 2 down/limited involvement linebacker because he isn’t that big. Has a lot of heart and solid ability, but heart and playing above one’s measurements (i.e. size) will only take someone so far in the NFL.
4.) Kevin Pierre-Louis, Outside Linebacker (Boston College)
Notes: Pierre-Louis is a light on his feet and active outside linebacker who made a name for himself outside the shadows of former Boston College linebackers Luke Kuechly (2011) and Nick Clancy (2012). Those linebackers were tackling machines and the names people thought of when analyzing Eagle linebackers in 2011 and 2012. But Pierre-Louis was always that steadying unsung force that was hard to ignore. In all of Pierre-Louis’ four years as a starting outside linebacker for BC, he was overshadowed by other linebackers including Steele Divitto this past year. But Pierre-Louis may have been the Eagles most athletic linebacker in the past four football seasons as he ran a 4.51 at the Combine. His 4.65 grade at the Combine suggest that he will have a tough road to make an NFL roster. He has the speed, the talent, and competitiveness to make it in the NFL at least as an alternate or special teams maven, but so do a lot of other linebackers in the 2014 draft class.
5.) Avery Williamson, Inside Linebacker (Kentucky)
Notes: Williamson was asked to be a two-gap up the middle action/tackling machine inside linebacker for the Wildcats in 2013. Williamson doesn’t jump off the page at anyone as far as overall talent, but he can help a team with some solid play on special teams and as a helpful backup inside backer. His 4.9 grade at the Combine suggests that he will have a hard hill to climb to make it in the NFL because he doesn’t jump out at evaluators. He does have 4.66 speed which is limited space/area inside linebacker territory.
6.) Matthew Paradis, Center (Boise State)
Notes: Paradis is a no frills center who likes to get his hands on a defensive tackle for a bit, clean him out of the play, and then move on to the next defender to block. He took a 5.02 grade at the Combine and that’s about right because this guy can play in the NFL. But it will take a lot of time on the PAT unit, countless hours of watching veteran centers do their jobs, and vocal tutoring from his coaches and said centers.
Photo By Desiree Astorga
7.) Kasim Edebali, Defensive End (Boston College)
Notes: Edebali has the body structure of a stand up outside linebacker and/or rush end. Edebali has some serious pass rushing skills and he hates being blocked which is why his spin move can be so crisp and is a big part of his pass rushing repertoire. His 5.01 grade at the Combine suggests that he has the talent to be a rotational pass rusher and occasional run defender, but he needs time to develop those skills on the Practice Squad or as a third-string defensive end.
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