In Senior Bowl, Allen better in second half

Western Kentucky QB White could also be intriguing prospect for Browns GM Dorsey

If any team should be patient judging players in the Senior Bowl played on Jan. 27 in Mobile, Ala., it’s the Browns.

Josh Allen, the quarterback from Wyoming on the North team, had a first half he would want to erase from any highlight reel. But he threw two touchdown passes in the second half and finished the day completing 9 of 13 passes for 158 yards and two touchdowns. His 222.1 passer rating was second highest among the seven quarterbacks that played in the game won by the South,

45-16.

Allen, along with Sam Darnold of Southern Cal, Josh Rosen of UCLA and Baker Mayfield of Oklahoma are considered the top quarterbacks in the NFL draft.

Because the Browns have the first pick in 2018, coupled with the fact they haven’t had an established quarterback since Bernie Kosar was cut in 1993, the quarterback General Manager John Dorsey chooses with the first or fourth pick on April 26 has the potential to be a franchisechanger for the Browns.

Most coaches and team officials leave Mobile before the Senior Bowl game is played. For them, the workouts and practices in the days leading up to the game provide a better environment for accurately grading players.

If the actual game was all they had to go on, the best quarterback in the 2018 draft would be either Kyle Lauletta of Richmond (8-of-12 passing for 198 yards and three touchdown passes or Mike White of Western Kentucky (8-of-11, 128 yards, one touchdown).

Darnold and Rosen were not part of the Senior Bowl. Mayfield played only two series, completing three of seven passes for nine yards.

White is intriguing. He is 6-foot-4, 225 pounds and, according to story at drafanalyst.com written before the Senior Bowl, a player Dorsey favors. That doesn’t mean Dorsey would shock the world by selecting White with one of his early picks, but what about this scenario:

Sign or trade for a veteran quarterback when the league year begins on March 14. Take running back Saquon Barkley of Penn State with the first pick, one of the quarterbacks with the fourth pick, draft White late in the second round or in the third, trade DeShone Kizer and dump Cody Kessler and Kevin Hogan so coach Hue Jackson and offensive coordinator Todd Haley can start over with a fresh stable of quarterbacks.

“After breaking down the WKU film this past weekend, I was incredibly impressed by White’s poise, patience, accuracy and overall awareness. I’m told he’s a favorite of Cleveland Browns general manager John Dorsey,” Tony Pauline of Draftanalyst.com said in the story from Mobile.

White, the first quarterback to play for the South team, showed touch on his passes. Allen did the same thing in the second half.

The draft is three months away. Players will try to sell themselves at the NFL Scouting Combine in early March and in personal workouts.

Allen is on record saying he wants to play for the Browns, and if the Giants want Darnold or Rosen with the second pick, the Browns can probably still get Allen with the fourth overall choice. The way he bounced back from a poor first half at the Senior Bowl is evidence he can answer a challenge.

BRYNN ANDERSON — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS North quarterback Josh Allen of Wyoming hands off to Jaylen Samuels of North Carolina State during the first half of the Senior Bowl on Jan. 27.

BRYNN ANDERSON — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS South quarterback Kurt Benkert of Virginia is sacked by North defensive end Jalyn Holmes of Ohio State during the first half of the Senior Bowl on Jan. 27 in Mobile, Ala.

BRYNN ANDERSON — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS North back Jaylen Samuels of North Carolina State runs the ball against South defensive tackle Andrew Brown of Virginia during the first half of the Senior Bowl.