Reese’s Senior Bowl 2019: 5 prospects who improved NFL draft stock

Delaware’s Nasir Adderley had a lot of buzz coming into this week in Mobile, and his performance at the Senior Bowl throughout the week of practice and in the game on Saturday further sent his stock rising up draft boards.

Adderley came in with the hype surrounding his rangy athleticism, which brought with it the thought that he could be a potential ball-hawking safety at the next level. There was some concerns, however, about his ability in coverage due to him predominantly playing deep safety during his time in college.

Adderley held up well in coverage and flashed the ball-hawking ability by picking off Buffalo’s Tyree Jackson in the fourth quarter to all but seal the win for the North team.

Adderley did well in run support as well, showing that he was unafraid to stick his nose in there and make plays in the box. He delivered some thunderous hits throughout the game, and always seemed to be in the right position to make plays.

He’s a guy you’re going to continue to hear a lot about between now and the NFL combine next month. He’s likely to impress in Indianapolis as well, and I think he has a shot to end up as the first safety off the board come April’s draft.

He’s more polished right now than Alabama’s Deionte Thompson, and he might ultimately have a higher ceiling as well once he adapts to the speed of the game being played at such a higher level than he was accustomed to at Delaware.

In the very least, I think Adderley’s stock is up safely near the first round at the moment. If he somehow drops to the second, then a team would be getting a huge steal.