Senior Bowl Notebook: O.J. Howard and the Tight Ends Steal the Show

MOBILE, Ala. — Tight ends were the big stars of the first day of Senior Bowl practices.

If you read that introduction and immediately thought, "That must mean it was a bad day for quarterbacks, running backs and wide receivers," you are only partially right. 

Yes, it was a rough afternoon of practices for fellas at the name positions. There were so many incomplete passes bouncing on the turf during the South team's 7-on-7 drill that it should have been renamed the Worm Crusher Drill. Running backs had a hard time distinguishing themselves in shells-and-shorts practices where no one was tackled to the ground. And wide receivers, for the most part, were still adjusting to the quarterbacks.

But the tight ends truly were impressive. This is the best tight end draft class in at least five years. And some of the best prospects are here in Mobile, led by Alabama's O.J. Howard, the consensus No. 1 option.

Howard lived up to his billing Tuesday. He beat Crimson Tide teammate Ryan Anderson up the seam for a deep catch in a one-on-one drill. He snagged several passes one-handed. He was impossible to cover in 7-on-7 and full-squad drills.

It all begged the question: With so many first-round locks skipping the Senior Bowl in recent years, what was Howard doing here?

"Whenever there's an opportunity to come out and play against great talent, I'm always willing to do it," Howard said after practice.

Howard is sharing the tight end depth chart with great talent. Evan Engram of Ole Miss split reps with Howard on the South squad. Engram ended the South's 11-on-11 drills by racing up the seam for an over-the-shoulder catch.

Rounding out the South's tight end roster is speedy Gerald Everett of South Alabama. Everett may not be a household name, but he held his own with Howard and Engram. He also drew praise from Cal quarterback Davis Webb, who arrived early for the Senior Bowl and spent the weekend throwing to Everett's college teammates.

"They said he was a first-round talent," Webb said. "They said, 'When you see him run and see what a freak athlete he is, you'll fall in love with him.' Which is true."

The North squad had an array of tight end talent, too. Toledo's Mike Roberts' hands measured at a whopping 11 ⅝ inches during weigh-ins. He put those human excavator buckets on display in the late afternoon practice by catching everything thrown at him while using an impressive size-quickness combination to get his body between defenders and the football.

Chris O'Meara/Associated Press

Arkansas' Jeremy Sprinkle, meanwhile, demonstrated his physicality as both a blocker and as a route-runner. He looked just as likely to run over defenders as around them.

Sprinkle, in fact, may be the best blocker in this year's tight end class, but one of his primary goals this week is to put teams' minds at rest about a shoplifting incident that got him suspended from the Belk Bowl at the end of the season.

"I'm just being upfront and honest with them," Sprinkle said. "They understand that it was out of my character to do that. They are pretty understanding about it.

"I think it will hurt me a little bit," Sprinkle added. "I'm just trying to get past it and show them who I really am."

Blocking and versatility are what set this year's crop of tight ends apart. Recent drafts have featured some tight ends who were little more than oversized slot receivers and others who were hulking blockers who could barely lumber down the field.

This year's models, starting with Howard, are decent-to-excellent receivers with plenty of experience lining up next to the right tackle and hammering defensive ends.

Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

"I think run blocking at the tight end position is what separates a lot of tight ends from others," Howard said. "I wanna go out there and show everybody that I'm a run-blocker. My whole career at Alabama, I had my hand in the dirt."

Howard compares his game to Jason Witten, Jimmy Graham (whom he singled out for his ability to beat defenders for contested passes) and Jordan Reed (for his route running). He was also prompted to compare himself to a great Alabama tight end of yesteryear: Ozzie Newsome, now the general manager of the Ravens, a team likely in need of an all-purpose talent at the position.

"Ozzie was way better than me, a whole different level than me," Howard said.

After a little more prompting, Howard admitted that no, Newsome and the Ravens had not spoken to him yet. Then again, it was only Tuesday afternoon.

Tight end generally isn't the sexiest position, but there are exceptions. Travis Kelce is a superstar with his own Bachelor-like reality show, and the world knows Rob Gronkowski by a syllable. Tight ends can be superstars. There has just been a shortage of suitable applicants lately.

Teams like the Giants and Jets, who have gotten little from their tight ends during the draft shortage of recent years, will find a lot to love in this year's Senior Bowl class: Howard's all-around ability, Everett's quickness and maturity, Sprinkle's raw power, the size and pure talent of the others.

The glut of talent at the position has created a spirit of camaraderie, as well as some healthy competition.

"We're gonna compete," Howard said. "It's a business out here. But we're picking each other up and telling each other little things so we can get better."

Observer of the Day

Ole Miss quarterback Chad Kelly is unable to play in this year's Senior Bowl due to a knee injury, but he is in Mobile meeting with teams. Kelly spent the South practice wearing a yellow quarterback's jersey over a hoodie, first conferring with coaches during drills and later just sort of hovering on the sidelines.

Kelly, of course, has a checkered past of rumors, arrests and allegations. Coming to Alabama for meetings makes sense for him. And teammate Evan Engram advocated passionately for Kelly, calling him a "football junkie" who will silence doubters once teams get to know what he is about.

But lingering on the fringe of the practice field all by himself looked a little strange for a prospect whose entire resume is a little strange.

Catch of the Day

Syracuse wide receiver Amba Etta-Tawo leaped in the end zone and ripped a C.J. Beathard pass away from Lamar cornerback Brendan Langley late in the North squad's 11-on-11 drills.

Grambling's big, physical Chad Williams displayed impressive pass-catching skills throughout the South's early practice, capping an afternoon of tough snags with an over-the-shoulder reception on a deep corner route.

Stars of the Lineman Pit

• Texas A&M defensive end Daeshon Hall defeated all comers in one-on-one pass protection drills with a combination of quickness, orneriness and a devastating inside move.

• Illinois linebacker Carroll Phillips provided consistent pressure off the edge during the North's full-squad drills, beating a variety of blockers.

• It was a rough day for offensive linemen in general. But Miami guard Danny Isidora kept finding a way to counter pass-rush moves and stymie his defenders, despite a technique that won't be written up in any blocking textbooks.

Winner of the Weigh-In

Tanoh Kpassagnon, a defensive end from Villanova, looked like a lost member of the Guardians of the Galaxy at a sculpted-from-titanium 6'6 ⅞" and 280 pounds. Kpassagnon's wingspan measured 84 ½ inches, slightly shorter than that of the average crop duster.

Kpassagnon dominated good FCS competition as a 3-4 end. He's hoping to prove himself as an edge-rusher against higher-caliber competition. He had a solid first day, with several blockers resorting to holding during one-on-one drills in the pit. Kpassagnon still has some adjustments to make, however. Having a body that looks like a special effect should help.

Loser of the Weigh-In

Kent Horner/Getty Images

San Diego State running back Donnel Pumphrey looks on tape like everything you would want from a small, quick changeup runner. But at 5'8 ¼" and a slight 169 pounds, Pumphrey is about 11 pounds below the standard NFL minimum for a running back.

To put Pumphrey's weight into perspective: The folks at Reese's, a primary sponsor of the event, sent Cuppy the company mascot through the weigh-in process. The kid wearing the peanut butter cup mascot suit weighed 161 pounds. Pumphrey only beat the candy mascot by eight pounds.

And there is no truth to the rumor that Packers general manager Ted Thompson cornered Cuppy after the weigh-ins and asked him (her? it?) about switching to running back.  

Mike Tanier covers the NFL for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter: @MikeTanier.