Tuesday at the Senior Bowl is by far the longest day. Most media (myself included) arrive on Monday night with plans of waking up at six o’clock the following morning to catch the live weigh-ins. Some of them (also myself) sleep through their alarms and take the L. Oh well Womens Anthony Munoz Jersey , the measurements end up online anyways.But for the players and coaches, it’s a full day. Right after the weigh-ins, media day gets crunched into the span of three hours. The top players from each squad have their mini podiums to sit behind and most of us are personally introduced to some players we caught a glance of a few Saturdays last fall. The coaches end up saying interesting things too.The players have semi-absorbed a minimized-yet-nuanced playbook and are ready to hit the field for their first practice. Most of them haven’t been in pads since late November, a handful of them are teammates once again but their individual talents begin to humble. The vast majority are no longer the best player on their own team, though there were a few who could sufficiently make that argument after Tuesday’s practice. Let’s start with the standouts. Defensive linemanEverybody in the stadium took note of Mississippi State’s Montez Sweat for the South. Those who didn’t just weren’t looking at the field, or on Twitter.Sweat showed in the one-on-ones that he can win in just about every way. If you give him a soft edge, he can burst around and under the tackle. If you recover and get your hands on him, he has a rip move to negate it. If you overstep in your kick slide, he can fire off an inside counter. If you try to anchor his bull rush, he can put you on your behind. Sweat’s tape and production against SEC competition has already gotten him in the first round conversation. He’s doing nothing against the top senior tackles in the country that he hasn’t already done this year.The South team also had teammates from Texas A&M Kingsley Keke and Daylon Mack. Both interior rushers played with excellent leverage and extension http://www.thebengalslockerroom.com/authentic-ryan-glasgow-jersey , getting the South guards off-balanced and constantly re-anchoring. Mack in particular plays with natural leverage at 6’1”, but his violent hand usage elevated him from the rest. The North team’s interior rushers showed out in a similar way, specifically Khalen Saunders from Western Illinois and Renell Wren of Arizona State. Keep in mind, defensive tackles are some of the guys that see the biggest rises in stock from the Senior Bowl. Aaron Donald and Grady Jarrett are the best examples, and when someone starts showing sheer dominance in one-on-ones, it’s smart to take note.Also, Saunders can do this:QuarterbacksThere’s no Baker Mayfield amongst this group of passers. The top two in the eyes of the actual decision-makers in this year’s crop seem to be Daniel Jones and Drew Lock, and this is as good of a synopsis as you’ll see about them:Jones had trouble driving throws down the field while Lock looked slow as a processor, but on the first day of practice, looks can be deceiving. Each quarterback has his flaws but will undoubtedly make a certain franchise want to risk it all and draft them at a spot they probably should not go. As of right now Jake Fisher Jersey White , neither are worth the 11th overall pick. I cannot say the same thing about other notable quarterback down here.Will Grier from West Virginia slung the ball like he had something to prove — not that he wasinsanely accurate or anything, but he attached a cannon to his arm that clearly wasn’t there this past season. Grier’s got the production that teams should covet, but his velocity is less than desirable. The outrageous throwing speed he put on display yesterday was a clear indication that he wanted to erase those doubts and as a result, he looked uncomfortable and less-than-stellar. He’s better than he looked on Tuesday, we’ll see if that throwing speed returns to the mean.CornerbacksThe Bengals don’t exactly need cornerbacks, regardless of Darqueze Dennard’s impending free agency, but the North cornerbacks balled out. In particular, Corey Ballentine of Washburn was superb in bump-and-run coverage against the North receivers and never looked out of place. It’s interesting how small school prospects handle playing against mostly Power 5 talent, and Ballentine stepped up to the plate.Nasir Adderley of Delaware is listed as a safety, but the above paragraph describes him to a tee as well. The North had had playing cornerback a good amount of time and he looked natural there with fluid hips and timely hands. Adderley is one of the few small school guys that can realistically be drafted in the first round Jeff Driskel Jersey , so his performance here is astronomical.The Wednesday practices will not be open to the media as a storm has forced both teams to practice inside a nearby indoor facility. The next update will either be posted Thursday night or sometime on Friday, so stayed tuned. CINCINNATI (AP) — Still winless as September winds down.The Bengals are off to another one of their season-scuttling starts, this time under a new coach.They were pushed around in the first half, pulled off a big rally for a late lead, then frittered it away in the closing minutes for a 21-17 loss in Buffalo .Zac Taylor is 0-3 in his first year as head coach, matching Marvin Lewis’ start when he was hired in 2003. The Bengals have never reached the playoffs after opening a season 0-3.As September fades, it’s already circle-the-wagons time. Taylor admonished his team so loudly after the game that his voice carried outside the locker room. He told his players that the “wolves” were coming — fans and media ready to write the team off — and a big game is up next, one that could change their trajectory.“Thank God we play 16 games and not three because it would be a long year, but we have 13 more to go and we’re going to be headed in the right direction and everyone in that locker room believes it and there’s no doubt about it,” Taylor said.Through the first three games http://www.thebengalslockerroom.com/authentic-clint-boling-jersey , they’ve lurched from self-destruction to stretches of impressive performance, but they’ve been unable to do things right long enough to get a win, especially at the end of games.“You see the potential,” safety Jessie Bates III said.For now, everyone sees the record.WHAT’S WORKINGThe defense was flattened during a 41-17 loss to San Francisco at Paul Brown Stadium. It was much better a week later, getting a fumble and an interception that gave Cincinnati a chance for its late rally to a 17-14 lead. The defense hung in there despite being on the field for 23 minutes in the first half because the offense managed only one first down.“We put them in a bind and fortunately they held up long enough for us to stick in that game,” Taylor said.The worn-down defense gave up a 78-yard touchdown drive in the closing minutes as Buffalo pulled it out.WHAT NEEDS HELPPenalties were a huge issue again. They were penalized seven times in the first half as the Bills pulled ahead 14-0. A penalty for too many men on the field put the Bills in position to go for a 2-point conversion. A holding penalty wiped out a touchdown on a kickoff return. The offense has put itself in poor down-and-distance situations in all three games.STOCK UPFour days after promising that he was going to re-emerge, running back Joe Mixon was a key part of the offense. He came into the game averaging only 1.6 yards per carry. In Buffalo, he ran for 61 yards, averaging 4.1 per carry Alex Erickson Jersey , and caught two passes for 34 yards and a touchdown — not a great game, but a move in the right direction.STOCK DOWNReceiver John Ross III topped 100 yards receiving in each of the two first games. In Buffalo, he dropped a pass and fumbled in the first half. Ross was targeted six times and finished with two catches for 22 yards.INJUREDTaylor said receiver A.J. Green isn’t ready to return to practice and won’t play in Pittsburgh. Green is recovering from an ankle injury suffered the first practice of training camp. He’s expected back sometime in the season’s first half.KEY NUMBER0 — The number of times the Bengals have made the playoffs or even managed a winning record after starting 0-3. It’s the 15th time in the Bengals’ 52 seasons that they’ve dropped their first three games.“Playoffs are so far down the road that we just need to win a game, and it starts this week with our best foot forward and going to get one,” Taylor said.NEXT STEPSThe next step is a doozy. The Bengals play the team that has dominated them, on the stage where they’ve been at their worst. They and the Steelers are 0-6 combined heading into their Monday night game at Heinz Field. The Bengals have lost eight straight and 11 of 12 against their AFC North rival, with the only win coming at Heinz Field in 2015. The Bengals are 6-15 in prime-time games since 2011, when Andy Dalton was a rookie, including 2-5 on Monday night.
