The first day of the 2020 Senior Bowl has come to a close — and for quarterback hungry teams like the Miami Dolphins, it was a great day to sit back and observe the “other” 2020 NFL Draft option in the 1st-round.
Oregon quarterback Justin Herbert dazzled in front of the Dolphins and the rest of the NFL, which has descended onto a small town on the Gulf of Mexico to scout the top senior prospects in the country. The Dolphins’ scouting group was highlighted by general manager Chris Grier, former Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino, senior executive Reggie McKenzie and others — all who came to the Senior Bowl undoubtedly to help Miami with their vetting process of the two high end quarterbacks in attendance between Herbert and Utah State’s Jordan Love.
Herbert didn’t disappoint, throwing with accuracy and velocity to all levels of the field despite never throwing to his South teammates before today. Herbert has been a long-time top quarterback prospect, but he’s battled some narratives about his personality and leadership ability — things he’s intent to disprove throughout the course of this week and the 2020 NFL Draft process. Joe Schad of the Palm Beach Post highlighted Herbert’s mission this afternoon.
“I don’t think I’m really an introvert,” said Herbert via Schad. “I think I’m somewhere in the middle. There are shades of both in me. It’s something I’ve really worked on. And the coaches have done a great job of pulling that out of me…I think people are worried about leadership and me being a pretty quiet guy. But I would say I’m not too quiet. I’ll talk your ear off. So there are these things I want to be transparent with. And give a good representation of myself.”
If Herbert booms this week, the Dolphins will be sure to notice. And having multiple options at their disposal for the biggest decision of the Chris Grier era will only help Miami make a confident decision. One day into this week and Herbert has passed with flying colors.
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