Is Week 11 really already over with? Maybe it’s because we just got our first look at a few teams this past weekend or because time seemingly doesn’t exist anymore in the middle of a pandemic, but the season is going by in the blink of an eye.
However, here are the 2021 NFL Draft prospects who caught my eye this past week.
1. QB Kyle Trask, Florida
Going 23-of-29 for 356 yards, six touchdowns, zero picks and five big-time throws is one hell of a stat line — regardless of the opponent. Oh, and Trask didn’t even have his top target, Kyle Pitts. He flashed his massive arm on multiple occasions and played efficiently on top of that. Trask now has a 91.7 passing grade on the season and has firmly played his way into the Round 1 conversation.
Kyle Trask keeps his ???? in the ring for Heisman ???? pic.twitter.com/gSEzrdQLtw
— ESPN (@espn) November 15, 2020
2. OT Alijah Vera-Tucker, USC
I’m not sure I’ve seen better offensive line tape all season than what Vera-Tucker put forth against Arizona this past weekend. He’s still yet to allow a pressure on 113 pass-blocking snaps this season at left tackle. That’s even more impressive considering it’s his first year at the position after switching from left guard over the offseason.
He plays so under control, locating linebackers at an elite level on Saturday en route to an 89.0 run-blocking grade. Don’t be surprised to see him in the first round come April.
Another clean performance from #USC OT Alijah Vera-Tucker (LT #75) yesterday vs. Arizona. Hard to believe that it’s only his second career game playing tackle.
In a zone based blocking scheme, he could be an ideal fit at either guard or tackle. pic.twitter.com/RIFqgagCB8
— Jordan Reid (@JReidNFL) November 15, 2020
3. ED Jaelan Phillips, Miami (FL)
We’ve always seen the tools, but only recently have we seen them really start to translate to the football field. With a mere seven career sacks since 2017 entering the weekend, Phillips broke out with three against Virginia Tech.
Jaelan Phillips beats his blocker back inside during an E/T stunt with the club/arm over. Gets the sack! #theu #miavsvt #miami pic.twitter.com/r0FbkUCVZb
— DLineVids (@dlinevids1) November 14, 2020
He now has 27 pressures over his past five games after dominating Virginia Tech. The former five-star recruit also added three run stops in what’s been a complete transformation as of late.
4. WR Elijah Moore, Ole Miss
Moore is very quickly becoming arguably the most impressive slot receiver in the country. He went for over 200 yards for the third time this season against South Carolina. That brings his total to 1,054 yards on the year through seven games. While his 91-yard score was a busted coverage, Moore also showed he can get open on his own.
Watch the inside WR in the bunch – Elijah Moore
Look at this separation! Holy moly @EaglesXOs pic.twitter.com/Xo6LGuaYdh
— Ben Fennell (@BenFennell_NFL) November 15, 2020
He’s now hauled in 74 of his 86 targets on the year and broken 15 tackles. At 5-foot-9, 185 pounds, it’s unlikely he ever gets into the first-round conversation. Still, he looks firmly entrenched in as a Day 2 pick.
5. LB Zaven Collins, Tulsa
This is one of the best linebacker classes in recent memory, and Collins' emergence as a dominant force for the Tulsa defense only makes it more formidable. For certain NFL schemes, it’s very likely that Collins could be their LB2 behind Micah Parsons at the moment. He is a massive 6-foot-4 and 260 pounds, but he covers ground like a galloping horse.
At that size, he has a 92.6 coverage grade on the season as well as a 90.7 pass-rushing grade. Against SMU this past weekend, he notched his third pick of the season to ice it for the Golden Hurricanes.
Who else but @ZavenCollins would seal @TulsaFootball's come-from-behind victory tonight ????.#AmericanPow6r pic.twitter.com/tFaS1KQ3Ze
— American Football (@American_FB) November 15, 2020
6. ED Kingsley Enagbare, South Carolina
This isn’t Enagbare’s first appearance on the top-10 performance list, as he’s made his presence felt in a big way on multiple occasions this season. He’s nearly matched his 24 total pressures from 2019 with 20 already through seven games. Against Ole Miss this past weekend, he showed some pretty ridiculous closing speed for a 270-pound edge defender.
South Carolina edge Kingsley Enagbare. pic.twitter.com/yBOvaoxDRu
— Jared Stanger (@JaredStanger) November 15, 2020
Enagbare is still raw on a down-to-down basis and is no sure thing to declare. You can quite easily see the physical tools are there, though.
7. CB Elijah Molden, Washington
We got our very first taste of the Washington slot corner, and he picked up right where he left off from 2019. Molden was targeted five times, allowing two catches for 16 yards and only one first down. He also forced two incompletions against Oregon State and registered eight tackles without a miss. This is the slot corner teams want in the 2021 NFL Draft.
8. ED Carlos Basham Jr., Wake Forest
While he hasn’t been nearly as consistent as we had hoped this year, Basham is still very much capable of doing grown-man things that separate him from others in this edge defender class.
Carlos Basham shrugging off a pulling guard… pic.twitter.com/nixut5bns1
— Cole Cubelic (@colecubelic) November 14, 2020
His Week 11 performance against North Carolina was easily his best all-around effort this year. He managed six pressures and two run stops despite the rest of Wake Forest’s defense being a glorified sieve. More of that please, Carlos.
9. WR Dazz Newsome, UNC
Newsome had taken a back seat in the Tar Heels' offense for much of the year prior to this past weekend. He’d yet to have more than 69 yards in any of his first seven games this season. That changed against Wake Forest. He hauled in all 10 of his targets for 189 yards and two scores. His best usage is as a vertical slot receiver at the next level, but he unfortunately hasn’t seen near that kind of role this season.
Dazz Newsome is FAST fast
— PFF College (@PFF_College) November 14, 2020
10. ED Myjai Sanders, Cincinnati
It’s been quite the breakout campaign for Sanders, who’s fueled the dominant Bearcats defense. After 32 pressures last season, he already has 30 in seven games in 2020. This past Friday against ECU, he racked up four pressures and batted a pass en route to a 89.8 pass-rushing grade. The Cincinnati edge defender has the length at 6-foot-5 and the burst you look for at the position. Now, he has the production to boot with a 91.1 pass-rushing grade on the season.
#Bearcats EDGE Myjai Sanders with another pass deflection. He had two last week vs HOU.
Sanders cracked @dpbrugler Top 50 this week.
6'5", 255, Long-lean frame, Explosive 1st Step. pic.twitter.com/qMmvvXEtTJ
— Steve Frederick (@_SteveFrederick) November 14, 2020
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