University at Buffalo pass rusher Khalil Mack is not going to be a participant in next weekend’s Senior Bowl. That according to the Senior Bowl Executive Director Phil Savage.
In an appearance on the John Murphy Show, Savage confirmed that he Mack will not be practicing or playing in the game down in Mobile next week.
“We don’t (expect to see him next week),” Savage told Murphy. “I already spoke to his representation. He’s one of those players who is considered to be at least in the top half of the first round. He feels he’s done enough on tape and through his college career and he doesn’t want to take the chance of possibly getting injured or miss a week of getting ready for the Combine. He’s going to bypass on the game.
“I think it’s more of an agent decision because Khalil is very competitive. We certainly were hopeful that he would accept the invite and come down participate in the week. It goes beyond your draft status. It’s a great week to meet a lot of people in the NFL.”
Mack was the Mid-American Conference Defensive Player of the Year, but coming from a non-power conference there are some that feel Mack could still have something to gain by participating in the week of practices and the game.
“I definitely agree with you on that in terms of getting them on the same stage in the same drills,” said Savage. “There’s no question that small school players can really help themselves. And Eric Fisher is probably the best example last year. He came into our week probably rated somewhere from 10-20 in the first round and based off his work in Mobile and the Combine he moved all the way up to number one. There were a number of small school players that saw that jump too Robert Alford from Southeastern Louisiana and he ended up going in the second round to the Falcons.”
Of course there are others who believe his draft stock won’t be impacted at all.
