Silver And Black Pride
Several defenders made names for themselves on Wednesday and should be on the Raiders’ radar
Mobile, Ala. — Silver and Black Pride had a strong presence during Day 2 of the Senior Bowl as Marcus Johnson and myself were in attendance for Wednesday’s practice. Marcus will focus on the quarterbacks and offensive players while the emphasis here will be on the defensive front seven.
The position group had several standout players as the linebackers had a good session as a whole, giving Raiders fans plenty of names to keep tabs on from now until late April.
South Carolina’s Demetrius Knight II was impossible to ignore, showing some pop behind his pads during the full-team periods. He made several impactful plays as a run defender, stonewalling blockers in the gap and making a few notable tackles. His instincts and speed against outside runs stood out as he was constantly in the right spot and showed off some range. Knight doesn’t have a ton of short-area quickness to be a great coverage linebacker man-to-man against running backs, but he could fill Robert Spillane’s role as a downhill run stuffer who can make plays in zone coverage.
An under-the-radar player who caught my eye on Wednesday was Cody Lindenberg from Minnesota. He’s also a downhill thumper in the running game which was on display during the second practice session of the week. But what really stood out from Lindenberg’s performance is he made a great read in zone coverage to get a pick during seven-on-seven. Lindenberg is a Day 3 target worth keeping tabs on during the draft season.
Jack Kiser from Notre Dame is a super senior at the Senior Bowl and that showed with his instincts as a run defender. Kiser made several tackles by being in the right spot at the right time during the full-team period. It’s a question mark on how much he’ll be able to contribute in the passing game, but the former Golden Domer could be a solid two-down backer at the next level.
On the other end of the spectrum, Georgia’s Smael Mondon Jr. is impressive in coverage. He’s a fluid mover and stood out in the one-on-ones against running backs, undercutting an option route to get a PBU. Mondon has some work to do against the run, but he did show improvement on Wednesday with his ability to take on blocks. Continuing to build on the latter could make him a complete backer at the next level.
After an impressive outing yesterday, Oregon’s Jeffrey Bassa was more up and down on Wednesday. He began the session by making a quick read against the run to get a tackle near the line of scrimmage but then had some issues in coverage, getting caught flat-footed during the one-on-ones against running backs. However, Bassa managed to finish strong by getting a PBU and tightening up during the final full-team period. In my opinion, he’s the most talented linebacker in Mobile and would be a good...
