Senior Bowl preview: 2020 NFL draft prospects you need to know

Senior Bowl practices start this week, which means the 2020 NFL draft is just around the corner.

What is the Senior Bowl? It's an invite-only showcase event for the best upperclassman prospects in college football. NFL teams will descend on Mobile, Alabama, to watch practices and see these prospects compete against one another. There are three days of practice, including 90-minute sessions for each team on Tuesday, and two-hour sessions on Wednesday and Thursday.

Check out coverage of practice on Wednesday and Thursday at 1:30 p.m. ET on ESPNU/ESPN App. The game is Saturday at 2:30 p.m. ET on NFL Network.

Our NFL draft experts -- Todd McShay, Mel Kiper Jr. and Steve Muench -- pick the best and rising prospects you should know in Mobile.

McShay: What to watch for from the six quarterbacks

Even without Joe Burrow, this is a talented senior quarterback group heading to Mobile. Justin Herbert headlines the signal-caller roster as a potential early first-rounder, but the class also includes College Football Playoff semifinalist Jalen Hurts and Pac-12 record-holder in passing yards in a season Anthony Gordon. Here's what I want to see from each QB this week.

Justin Herbert, Oregon

Team: South | QB ranking: 3

Quite simply, Herbert is the best quarterback on the field at the Senior Bowl -- and he has to look the part. I'm watching for him to dominate after throwing for 3,471 yards and 32 touchdowns this season. The best players always find a way to stand out by the end of the week, and the 6-foot-6 quarterback needs to separate himself from the pack. Show off the big arm. Make some plays with that mobility. And find some rhythm and consistency throughout the week. Herbert has to make a statement.

Jordan Love, Utah State

Team: North | QB ranking: 6

Can he handle the big stage? The fourth-year junior still needs some work processing in the pocket, and that shows up on the stat sheet: Love threw 17 interceptions this season. He has 6-foot-4 size, a live arm and the ability to extend plays with his legs. But while he had a decent showing in a losing effort at the Frisco Bowl (317 yards and three touchdowns), he has struggled most of the season in the spotlight, completing just 54.5% of his passes against a pair of ranked teams and throwing four interceptions to just one TD in those games. Love has to find composure amid national attention this week.

Jalen Hurts, Oklahoma

Team: South | QB ranking: 9

I'll have a close eye on Hurts' accuracy this week. There's a lot of arm strength and athleticism in his game, but he relied on Lincoln Riley's offensive scheme to spring open receivers and mask some accuracy issues at Oklahoma. Even then, Hurts missed his share of open targets -- just watch the tape from the semifinal against LSU, in which he went 15-of-31 passing. Scouts will be watching how he hits his marks this week, especially when throwing into tight windows.

Additionally, his pocket poise will be key at the Senior Bowl workouts. Hurts is early to bail out often, and he really needs to speed up his processing and delivery. He accounted for 53 touchdowns this season, but how well he stands tall in the pocket and gets the ball out will be important to his NFL success.

Shea Patterson, Michigan

Team: North | QB ranking: 16

Similar to Hurts, we need to see consistent accuracy from Patterson. The Ole Miss transfer has good arm strength and mobility, and he does a pretty decent job hitting his targets in the short-to-intermediate range. But he will throw off his back foot at times and falls off too many throws. And he is very erratic when throwing downfield. He completed 56.2% of his passes this season, which ranked outside the top 100 in the FBS, and that number dropped to 42.1% when throwing at least 15 yards downfield.

Anthony Gordon, Washington State

Team: North | QB ranking: 8

The numbers on Gordon's season were eye-popping, closing the year with 5,579 passing yards and 48 touchdowns through the air. Both ranked second in the country to Burrow. The Washington State QB anticipates well on his throws, but does he have enough arm strength? Only 11 of his 493 completions came on throws at least 25 yards downfield.

Steven Montez, Colorado

Team: South | QB ranking: 13

Montez needs to show he can be on time as a dropback passer. He tallied 2,808 yards for Colorado this season, but he still needs a lot of work with his footwork on drops. I'll be looking at how well he stays in sync with his wide receivers on timing drops this week.

Kiper: Best of the rest

This is a really talented group of seniors in Mobile, and I'm excited to see who steps up during practices. Going into the week, these are the non-quarterback prospects I have graded as the best in attendance. Keep in mind that rankings will change this week based on who excels at practice. (Note: LSU cornerback Kristian Fulton was originally on this list, but he pulled out of attending.)

Javon Kinlaw, DT, South Carolina

Team: South

Kinlaw didn't put up off-the-charts numbers for the Gamecocks -- he had only 12.5 sacks over three seasons -- but he wreaked havoc against the run and has some upside as a pass-rusher, if he can improve his technique. With a massive 6-foot-6 frame and excellent athleticism, teams are going to love Kinlaw's potential. With a great week of practice in Mobile, he could become a lock to be a top-15 pick in this draft and push Derrick Brown to be the first defensive tackle off the board.

Terrell Lewis, OLB, Alabama

Team: South

Lewis is a tough prospect to project for April's draft, but he has a chance to get into the first-round discussion if he can show that he's the best pass-rusher in Mobile. After hurting his elbow in 2017 and playing in only four games, he tore his ACL before the 2018 season and missed the entire year. That means he has really had only one full season of production, and he had six sacks and 11.5 total tackles for loss this past season. Lewis is now healthy, and he showed a quick first step and explosiveness while playing on the edge of the Crimson Tide defense in 2019. Will he continue that this week? He has a chance to be one of the top 3-4 outside linebackers to be drafted.

Ashtyn Davis, S, Cal

Team: North

Senior Bowl practices aren't always kind to safeties -- they're asked to compete in one-on-one drills against receivers, and they're put in positions that they're not used to. Will Davis, a former walk-on at Cal, thrive? That's what I want to see. He's a gifted athlete who had six interceptions over the past two seasons. I'm high on Davis' upside, and I could see him being a top-40 pick if he tests well in Indianapolis next month. (Note: Davis will reportedly not work out for teams in Mobile.)

Josh Jones, OT, Houston

Team: North

This is a deep offensive tackle class, but the order of the top group is far from locked in, particularly with Alex Leatherwood deciding to go back to Alabama for another season. Could Jones emerge as a top-25 pick? It's not out of the question. A four-year starter for the Cougars, Jones is going to get his chance to shine in Mobile, where he'll have to hold his own against several good pass-rushers. Jones (6-foot-6, 310 pounds) is light on his feet and is great in pass protection. I predicted in December that there would be at least three tackles taken in Round 1, and Jones has a shot to be in that tier.

Zack Baun, LB, Wisconsin

Team: North

Baun had a good junior season in 2018, racking up 63 tackles with 2.5 sacks and 7.5 total tackles for loss. This past season, though, he took his game to another level, emerging as one of the best defenders in the Big Ten. He had 76 tackles, 12.5 sacks and 19.5 total tackles for loss, and he added a pick-six and two forced fumbles. He was phenomenal, showing off a tremendous motor and some versatility to play multiple linebacker spots. He could play in a 4-3 or 3-4 defense in the NFL. Baun could be a top-40 pick in April.

Muench: Sleeper prospects who could rise

Here are five under-the-radar prospects who could shoot up draft boards with a strong week of practice in Mobile:

Antonio Gibson, RB/WR, Memphis

Team: South

Gibson, a junior-college transfer, had only 71 touches in 2019 but made the most of his chances, averaging 19.3 yards per catch and 11.2 yards per carry. He set the school record for all-purpose yards in a game (386 against SMU). He had a 97-yard return for a touchdown, a 50-yard touchdown catch and a 78-yard touchdown run in that game. Gibson is an instinctive runner with the strength to break tackles, above-average speed for his size (6-foot-2, 221 pounds) and enough elusiveness to make the first defender miss.

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Hurts flies for TD

On fourth down, Jalen Hurts flies just past the pylon to grab the third touchdown for the Sooners.

Adam Trautman, TE, Dayton

Team: North

Trautman, a fifth-year senior and team captain, caught 70 passes for 916 yards and 14 touchdowns in 2019. He's an above-average route runner, and his ability to move around the formation makes it easier to create favorable matchups. He has good body control and flashes the ability to make highlight-reel type catches. He's a willing blocker, and he has the frame (6-foot-6, 253 pounds) to keep developing in that area in the NFL.

Trevis Gipson, DE, Tulsa

Team: South

Gipson had 49 total tackles, 15 tackles for loss and eight sacks in 2019. He forced seven fumbles over the past two seasons. At 6-foot-4, 268 pounds, he lined up on the inside and the outside in Tulsa's scheme. He has the size and length to set the edge against the run. He wins with his hands, power and effort as a pass rusher off the edge. His quickness and active hands can give interior offensive linemen problems when he kicks inside.

Jeremy Chinn, S, Southern Illinois

Team: North

Chinn, four-year starter, finished his career with 13 picks and six forced fumbles. He's a playmaker with above-average instincts, length and ball skills. He is an active run defender with very good stopping power. Chinn is a strong safety prospect who doesn't have elite playing speed and has some limitations in man coverage. He could struggle at times in one-on-ones, but he has the size (6-foot-3, 212 pounds) and athletic ability to compete with tight ends and bigger slot receivers.

Alex Taylor, OT, South Carolina State

Team: South

Taylor transferred from Appalachian State and played basketball, not football, in 2017. He walked on to the South Carolina State football team in 2018 and started the past two seasons. He's not a finished product and his natural ability won't cover up lapses in technique against this level of competition as much as it did in college. That said, he has a huge frame (6-foot-9, 310 pounds) with outstanding length, and he has the mobility and toughness to develop into a starter in the NFL. The biggest key for him is progressing over the course of the week in Mobile.