The NFL season hasn’t officially concluded, with the Super Bowl, between the Chiefs and the Eagles, still a little over a week away. But for the Bengals, the offseason has already begun, with an eye, not only towards free agency, but also the NFL Draft. The Senior Bowl is set to take place on Saturday, but on Thursday, a lesser known collegiate all star game took place—the East-West Shrine Bowl.
The Shrine Bowl features prospects that are expected to be mid-late rounders in the draft, or undrafted free agents. That said, a few from this game do sometimes make it into the earlier rounds. While it does not have the notoriety of the Senior Bowl, there are still gems that come out of this game. With that in mind, I want to highlight a few names that stood out from the East-West Shrine Bowl.
DE, Johnny Walker (Missouri)
Walker was the biggest standout to me. Not only was he very productive, but his skill set looks very translatable to the NFL. His speed, burst, and bend were noticeable as he won around the edge several times. He got home for a couple of sacks, and a couple of his other pressures directly resulted in offensive miscues, including a batted pass.
DT, Tonka Hemingway (South Carolina)
Hemingway was the one who batted the pass mentioned previously. He also did a good job to get through on that play, putting himself in position to bat the pass. But his highlight came a little earlier, when he got a good hand strike in, before swiping his opponent’s hands, allowing him to get into the backfield for a sack. This was an early tone setter for him, as he was pretty consistent whenever on the field.
S, Marques Sigle (Kansas State)
Sigle had a standout play in this one. He was faced head to head with a TE, needing to make a tackle against a much bigger opponent. Fearlessly, he lowered his shoulder and delivered quite a blow. His hit jarred the ball loose, and the defense recovered the fumble.
G, Sal Wormley (Penn State)
Wormley had a few standout plays in the run game for his team. On one play, he was able to seal up an edge, which opened up a big hole for the ball carrier, resulting in a big gain.
