The 2026 Panini Senior Bowl has wrapped, and once again, Mobile delivered exactly what NFL evaluators love, which is a week where the pads did the talking. Between three days of physical, competitive practices and a defense-heavy game on Saturday, several prospects made themselves real money while others walked away with more questions than answers. With over 100 draft hopefuls on the field, the separation between “pro-ready,” “needs development,” and “stock falling” became pretty obvious. Below are the three biggest winners and three biggest losers from the week.
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2026 Senior Bowl Winners
EDGE T.J. Parker, Clemson
If there was one player who walked into Mobile with something to prove and walked out looking like he owned the place, it was Clemson’s T.J. Parker. His stock had dipped this past season after his sack production fell off, but the Senior Bowl gave him the perfect platform to remind scouts who he really is, and he took full advantage.
Parker consistently embarrassed offensive tackles in one-on-ones. His long arms were his main weapon all week, but more importantly, he showed a deeper bag than anyone expected. He showed off his inside counters, rip-through finishes, and even some surprising bend around the arc. He also set a strong edge against the run and carried himself like a player who knew he had first-round talent and just needed to show it again.
By the time practice ended on Thursday, scouts were openly calling him one of the best players in Mobile. In a defensive-heavy class, Parker did enough to justify why he was considered and should continue to be considered a first-round pick.
LB Jacob Rodriguez, Texas Tech
Jacob Rodriguez entered the week with production in 2025 that made him a fascinating linebacker prospect. With awards, turnovers, and Heisman votes on his resume, J-Rod was on a lot of radars. Mobile answered whether the tape was real … spoiler alert: It was.
Rodriguez was arguably the most consistent defender of the entire week. His processing speed stood out immediately. He beat running backs to landmarks and linemen to the point of attack. He also made one of the best individual practice plays of the week when he punched out a forced fumble, and later hauled in a diving interception. Every rep looked like a veteran NFL linebacker reading the game two beats ahead of everyone else.
Coaches and scouts couldn’t stop talking about his football IQ, and teammates gravitated toward him during drills. He entered the week in that Round 3 linebacker cluster, now he leaves looking like one of the safest Day 2 picks on the board and a future Mike linebacker with real NFL potential.
WR Malachi Fields, Notre Dame
Among a mediocre at best receiver group, Malachi Fields managed to look like he belonged in his own category. His size jumps off the field at 6’4″, 218, but what separated him was how well he played through contact and how natural he looked at the catch point. Press coverage didn’t bother him. Physical corners didn’t move him. He was simply the most reliable target in Mobile.
Fields made multiple highlight plays throughout the week, including the catch everyone in Mobile was talking about, a deep, over-the-shoulder “moon ball” from Taylen Green where he tracked it like a centerfielder. Any concerns about his hand size evaporated instantly because he didn’t drop a thing all week.
2026 Senior Bowl Losers
QB Sawyer Robertson, Baylor
For a quarterback in a thin class, the Senior Bowl can be a gift. For Sawyer Robertson, however, it became a harsh spotlight.
Robertson struggled to find rhythm in practice. His timing on outbreaking routes was inconsistent, and his ball placement rarely looked comfortable. His arm strength is NFL-caliber, but his operation speed and accuracy lagged behind the rest of the group. Robertson’s performance in the game didn’t help either. He had just one completion on five attempts and an interception that capped a tough week.
Robertson needed to elevate himself into that late Day 3 developmental tier with momentum. Instead, he leaves Mobile looking more like a long-term QB3 project.
RB Seth McGowan, Kentucky
No player rode the week’s emotional roller coaster quite like Seth McGowan. The good was obvious: His 29-yard run was the longest play of the entire Senior Bowl game. But the bad clearly outweighed that run on Saturday. McGowan put the ball on the ground in practice, dropped a catchable pass that became an interception, and had a few protection reps where he waited too long to initiate contact.
For running backs trying to separate themselves in a deep mid-round group, ball security and reliability are everything. McGowan’s flashes weren’t enough to overshadow the mistakes, and he leaves Senior Bowl week viewed as more volatile than evaluators hoped.
QB Luke Altmyer, Illinois
Luke Altmyer wasn’t necessarily bad in Mobile, but, as I mentioned with Sawyer, he also didn’t give teams an “I belong in the Day 2 conversation” type of week. His Thursday practice was genuinely sharp, showing poise in the pocket and a beautiful back corner end-zone throw to Dan Villari, but the rest of the week painted a different picture.
Altmyer struggled to consistently push the ball outside the numbers, his timing in rhythm throws came and went, and he had stretches where the ball fluttered or arrived late. In a quarterback group starving for someone to create separation, Altmyer had an opportunity to make that move, and he did not.
He leaves Mobile looking exactly as he did coming in, which is like a long-term backup type who fits nicely in a West Coast or quick-game system. And, unfortunately for him, not someone who elevated his stock. When the spotlight was available for someone to grab, Altmyer didn’t seize it; in a thin QB class, failing to stand out is a loss.
Final Thoughts
The 2026 Senior Bowl didn’t just showcase talent, it clarified tiers, exposed flaws, and put real momentum behind several prospects who seized their moment. T.J. Parker reintroduced himself as a first-round edge, Jacob Rodriguez proved his instincts translate against elite competition, and Malachi Fields validated every bit of the hype he carried into Mobile. On the other side, players like Sawyer Robertson, Seth McGowan, and Luke Altmyer leave with more work to do as the draft cycle heats up. With the combine and pro days still ahead, these evaluations aren’t final, but the Senior Bowl always serves as the first major sorting hat of draft season. This year, it made some outcomes feel a whole lot clearer.
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