Rival Views: Who has most to prove at Senior Bowl?

Rivals.com National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell and National Recruiting Analyst Adam Gorney don’t always see eye to eye. In this edition of Rival Views, the two debate who has the most to prove at the Senior Bowl:

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All eyes will be on the quarterbacks, of course, so players like Josh Allen and Baker Mayfield would be obvious answers, but I’m looking to see how Alabama’s Da’Shawn Hand does. Hand, as you may remember, was our No. 1 player in the country in 2014 ahead of Myles Garrett but had a very pedestrian career at Alabama where he played behind guys like Jonathan Allen and others. His senior season was supposed to be his breakout year but it never happened so now he has to wow scouts at events like this and the combine as well as his Pro Day.

He has immense talent, there is no doubt about it, but can he put it together on the football field? He’s considered a mid-round pick at best by most, but a big week and game could bolster that stock and we’ve seen underachieving former five-stars land as high as round two based solely on potential. Could Hand shoot up the charts? It’s doubtful based on what we’ve seen so far as he’s running out of chances.

If we're talking about possibly the No. 1 overall pick, Josh Allen has the most to prove at the Senior Bowl. At Tuesday's weigh-in, Allen measured at just under 6-foot-5 and 237 pounds with 10 1/8-inch hands, tied for the biggest at the event. That's excellent news for Allen backers who see him as possibly the next Ben Roethlisberger or Carson Wentz and someone who could play in cold-weather cities. Cleveland has the first and fourth picks overall and some mock drafts have Allen going that high. ESPN's Mel Kiper has Allen going No. 1 overall.

But what could happen to Allen, who did not have huge production at Wyoming this season and was awful against Power Five competition, if he struggles during the week in Mobile? Many NFL teams might be scared away in favor of another quarterback in a loaded draft at that position. With Josh Rosen, Sam Darnold, Baker Mayfield, Lamar Jackson, and even Mason Rudolph available, Allen better shine this week or he could move down in the first round easily.