Both defenses were on full display on Saturday. Both the National and American teams combined for 6 sacks, 9 tackles for loss, 2 turnovers and featured dominating performances from the front seven on both squads. Although both offenses picked it up in the 2nd half, there were plenty of standouts on the defensive side of the ball, and unfortunately, a few letdowns.

Defensive Standouts:

Janarius Robinson, DE, FSU

The 6’5 pass rusher from Tallahassee had a great week of practice down in Mobile, and he capped it off with a great showing on game day. Whether it was getting the better of Alex Leatherwood in one on one drills or even finishing the game with 1.5 sacks and 1.5 tackles for loss, including almost having another sack in the 3rd against Ian Book, Robinson’s stock has risen this week; definitely worth taking a mid-round pick on. His measurements and size are staggering add to his already impressive game day showcase.

Riley Cole, LB, Southern Alabama

The Senior Bowl always takes place in/near the Southern Alabama campus, so it was fitting that Cole was able to showcase himself in front of his home crowd. While his team fought well in what was, ultimately, a losing effort, Cole ended the game with 6 tackles, one for loss, and a key pass breakup in the RedZone against South Dakota State wideout Cade Johnson. Cole showed great ability and in stuffing the run and a solid tackling technique in a game where no RB (with the exception of Michael Carter) had more than 20 rushing yards on the day. Not a bad way for Cole to finish his final game on Hancock Whitney’s turf; when his light shined the brightest.

Defensive Letdowns:

Thomas Graham, DB, Oregon

Man, this kid had a rough outing. Whether it was the few snaps he had playing outside or playing in the slot against Clemson wide receiver Amari Rodgers, Graham was picked on all game long. He gave up both a TD and a 2-point conversion against Rodgers, and the only good play he had was sniffing out a screen pass and making the tackle. Graham had a solid practice all week, but nothing went his way in actual game time. He also played off coverage and didn’t get to use his hands a lot at the LOS against his matchups. Hopefully, this performance is an outlier for him.

Paddy Fisher, LB, Northwestern

After a good showing this week during the Senior Bowl practices, Fisher didn’t live up to his hype coming in, only recording one tackle on his first snap. The Northwestern product was definitely the least impressive player in the front seven. And that’s saying something; considering nearly all the other box defenders performed well overall on Saturday. Fisher got held up on a block against Michigan FB Ben Mason, which led to the big 27-yard run by UNC halfback Michael Carter. In a game in which several linebackers were able to make plays against the run, Paddy showed very little during the game, which could potentially tank his draft stock.

-By: Kris Thomas

Senior Bowl Defensive Standouts and Letdowns