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Key Takeaways Reese’s Senior Bowl Day 2 (American Team)

When the American team steps onto the field at Hancock Whitney Stadium in Mobile, Ala, you hear them loud and clear. The main reason being is because of Panthers coach Matt Rhule, whose voice carries from one end of the football field to the other.

From the players to the rest of the assistants, the American team brings a vibrant energy to them, and this sets the tone for the next two hours throughout the practice.

Here are some takeaways from Day 2 from the American team’s practice.

(Make sure you also check out the recap video of some standout players from the National team.)

Day 2 Notes

Everything starts and ends with the quarterbacks, and the American team’s roster has some intriguing prospects: Mac Jones, Jamie Newman and Kellen Mond.

After not making much of a buzz in the first practice, Jones cemented himself as the top quarterback at the Senior Bowl on Day 2.

Jones’ arm may not be the strongest, but his accuracy and decision making were evident throughout the Wednesday practice. He also had the throw of the day during the team session, where Jones leads tight end Tre’ McKitty on a route heading towards the left sideline

There was also a simulated third-and-8 play in 11 on 11, and Jones doesn’t force anything down the field, but instead climbs the pocket, finds his wide receiver on a crossing route and that converts the chains.

Since Jones was surrounded by plenty of talent at Alabama, there were questions if he would be the same player down in Mobile. Wednesday’s practice indicated he can make all the necessary throws, regardless of the talent he is playing with.

Early on in practice, it looked like Newman was going to be the breakout candidate on the day. He showcased the zip he has in his arm, throwing to receivers who were running routes on air. When the receivers and the defensive backs went to one-on-one drills, there were some touch passes that Newman threw and one in particular traveled a good distance to the left corner of the endzone on an over route, which was caught by the receiver.

But Newman’s day started to turn when the team portion of practice started. There were back-to-back plays where Newman threw interceptions, and the first one wasn’t even close to his intended target.

There is talent with Newman, but clearly, he is still a work in progress at this point in his career.

Mond on the other hand, was like the weather on Tuesday’s practice — up and down.
When the practice went to the 7-on-7 portion, Mond couldn’t connect with a wide receiver on several of his passes. His wideouts were running good routes, creating separation, but for whatever reason, Mond struggled to get his playmakers the ball.

The former Texas A&M Aggie did settle down as the practice went on. He had a nice completion over the middle of the field to Clemson wide receiver Amari Rodgers, which was Mond’s best throw of the day.

But the player who had arguably the best day of practice on the American team was Rodgers. He consistently won his one-on-one matchups against opposing cornerbacks, caught several passes during the team portion of practice and created some generous throwing windows for his quarterbacks.

There was one rep in one-on-ones where Rodgers was shut down by Georgia cornerback Mark Webb. Newman was the QB and was forced to tuck and run with the ball because of Webb’s excellent coverage. But Rodgers went up against Webb for a second rep and made a great catch, high-pointing the football in the front right corner of the end zone.

He also had a few good reps when working on a blocking drill, where the wide receiver had to block the cornerback and prevent the defender from getting to the ball carrier who received the ball on a toss in the backfield. Rodgers weighed in at 5-foot-9, 211 pounds on Monday, so it was encouraging to see he can hold up when asked to block.

To cap the day off for Rodgers, he also got some work in at punt returner. Rodgers made an impressive catch, where he quickly had to cover some ground, track the football and secure the punt.

One last standout from Day 2 of practice was Aaron Robinson, cornerback from Central Florida. He was actually a guy who had some decent coverage reps on the first day of practice and that continued today.

Robinson has a smooth backpedal and plays with good technique, which allows him to stay close to opposing wide receivers.

He does need to work on his physicality when it comes to getting blockers off of him. But his ability to break when the receiver does and his change of direction make him an intriguing player to keep an eye on moving forward.

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