Eagles Notes: Deion Barnes out to make impression at Senior Bowl

MOBILE, Ala. - Considering how he thought he performed in the first two days of Senior Bowl practices, Deion Barnes may have wanted to reconsider his decision to leave Penn State with one more year of eligibility.

But Thursday was better than Tuesday and Wednesday, the defensive end said, and he still has the game on Saturday to impress scouts and improve his stock for the draft. Early indications are that he'll be selected in the middle to late rounds.

"The first two I didn't do as well as I wanted to," Barnes said. "But the last practice I think I picked it up."

Barnes spent most of the week practicing at defensive end. But he also lined up as an outside linebacker during individual drills, and there were some obvious inconsistencies when it came to rushing from a two-point stance and dropping into coverage.

Some scouts look at Barnes' build (6-foot-4, 260 pounds) and see an outside linebacker. He said he was willing to play either position.

"He's an athletic edge guy, and I think that's what you're going to see on tape," NFL Network draft analyst Mike Mayock said. "Is he a 4-3 end? Is he a 3-4 outside linebacker? And that process has just started."

The Philadelphia-born Barnes (Northeast High) declared for the draft in late December after a solid season in which he recorded 44 tackles and six sacks and was named honorable mention all-Big Ten. He said it was an easy decision after graduating in 31/2 years.

"I was proud of that," Barnes said. "And then I talked to my parents and my mentors and we all felt that I was physically and mentally ready. I felt like it was time to go ahead and perform at the next level."

There are three other Penn State products at the Senior Bowl. Linebacker Mike Hull flashed during Tuesday's practice, but he injured the knee that underwent minor surgery earlier this month on Wednesday and pulled out on Thursday.

Safety Adrian Amos didn't make a great impression with some NFL scouts, but tackle Donovan Smith did. Utah defensive end Nate Orchard, who was clearly the best edge rusher during practices, said that Smith was the most effective offensive lineman he faced this week.

Aside from Barnes, Northwestern safety Ibraheim Campbell was the only local product here. The Philadelphia native and Chestnut Hill Academy product performed well near the box and against the run but had some issues covering in space, according to some scouts.