With all the general managers, coaches, and scouts in attendance for the Senior Bowl, there is a lot of chatter going around. Here are some highlights from around the league on day four of the 2024 Senior Bowl week.
One of the most fascinating prospects in the 2025 NFL Draft is South Carolina safety Nick Emmanwori. Emmanwori is a freak athlete with an excellent combination of size, speed, and instincts. In 2024, Emmanwori made some huge plays for a superb Gamecocks defense and impressed a lot of team evaluators. Sources from five different teams said they had Emmanwori as a top 20 talent, but because of positional value, they think Emmanwori could be a late first-round or even a second-round pick. NFL teams deemphasize safeties in the draft and prioritize drafting cornerbacks in the first round. That hurts Emmanwori, but a number of team sources think Emmanwori is one of the best football players in the draft class. It only takes one team to fall in love, so Emmanwori might go higher than expected. Keep an eye on the Indianapolis Colts. If they have a hole at safety after free agency, Emmanwori could be in play at pick 14.
Usually, NFL teams have 15-20 players in each draft class with true first-round grades. Thus, every year, there are players with second-round grades who get selected in the top 32 picks on the opening night of the draft. There are always some bubble players on the edge of being first or second-round picks, and it is a mystery to NFL teams if those players will get selected on the opening night of the draft. In speaking to some team sources, some of the bubble players that have a lot of curiosity and buzz are Tennessee defensive tackle Omarr Norman-Lott, South Carolina defensive tackle T.J. Sanders, Marshall edge rusher Mike Green, Oregon defensive lineman Jordan Burch, and Ohio State defensive end J.T. Tuimoloau. Sources have already texted me asking what I am hearing about them and where I think teams are projecting them to go. Some have first-round potential, and some could slip to the second round.
Another prospect on the bubble of the first round is Ole Miss defensive tackle Walter Nolen, and Nolen is a love/hate prospect with teams. Nolen has some character concerns, and that will make his pre-draft interviews very important. Sources from multiple teams say he has a lot of lousy tape, especially from 2023 at Texas A&M. However, Nolen has some impressive tape, especially at times from 2024 with Ole Miss. Nolen has a lot of talent and a good skill set, so he should work out well leading up to the draft. Nolen is a bubble prospect with some love/hate feelings, which could lead to him going on the opening night or sliding well into day two.
Nolen isn’t the only Ole Miss defensive lineman with character issues, as teams have concerns about the Rebels’ defensive end, Princely Umanmielen. Umanmielen has a wide variety of draft grades due to some inconsistent play that accompanies those character concerns. Some project Umanmielen as a potential top-40 pick, while others have him a few rounds lower. The interviews in Mobile and the other interviews in the months to come are going to be very important for Umanmielen.
There have been some projections of West Virginia offensive tackle Wyatt Milum going in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft. However, after surveying sources from five different teams, none of them had a projection of Milum going on the opening night of the draft. “Our grade isn’t even close [to the first round],” said an AFC director of player personnel. That source said that Milum lacks a dominant trait like athleticism, quickness, or overwhelming strength. One source said that some players with second-round grades will get selected in the first round because there aren’t 32 players with first-round grades, and perhaps Milum could contend for that because he plays a premium position. That being said, all five team sources said they thought Milum would end up being a second or third-round pick.
