The Senior Bowl is the biggest event on the NFL Draft calendar outside of the Combine and the actual draft, which takes place in Chicago in April. Mobile, Alabama becomes the epicenter of the football world for this week.

This is my seventh year covering the festivities in person, and I’ll have nightly reports on the practices and goings on in the hotel lobbies and various places of interest around downtown Mobile. I’ll also cover the absurdity of the weigh-in, where perhaps 1500 men gather into a ballroom to watch over 100 football players walk onto the stage in their compression underwear and try to act like it is normal.

Senior Bowl majordomo Phil Savage has changed things up this year. Instead of four days of practices, there will be full contact sessions on three days. The weigh-in and media night are both on Tuesday instead of Monday. The hope is to keep more of the NFL personnel people in town for the entire week. Last year the final Thursday practice was attended by myself, Emory Hunt of Football Gameplan and perhaps 15 other people scattered about Ladd-Peebles Stadium.

Unfortunately several of the top players who had committed to participating have already dropped out. Some are due to injury, but others simply opted to back out on bad advice from agents. They either think they’re too good and have nothing to prove or fear they’ll have flaws exposed in the closely scrutinized practice sessions.

It’s a complete chicken-bleep move and everyone knows it. Savage publicly castigated the players who backed out without reason, including Alabama golden boy A.J. McCarron (Savage is a Bama radio guy and Tide players draw huge crowds here), and in talking to NFL decision makers they feel the same way. Among the dropouts are Ohio State DT Michael Bennett and TE Jeff Heuerman, Oregon C Hroniss Grasu, Kentucky DE Bud Dupree, Florida State WR Rashad Greene, Wake Forest CB Kevin Johnson and UCLA LB Eric Kendricks.

The Buckeyes and Ducks have some leverage as they played three extra games, though it’s worth noting Oregon LB Tony Washington showed up for Shrine Game practices 36 hours after playing in the College Football Playoff title game. Johnson’s absence is especially cautionary as he dropped out in order to gain weight. He’s a very skilled cover man but at 6’ and an unhealthy-looking 170 pounds his ability to handle the physicality of the NFL was the biggest question. Wussing out of a chance to show he can tells everyone here that he knows he cannot.

There are still scores of great players here. Ten of them I am focusing on this week, in no particular order:

Pittsburgh OT T.J. Clemmings. He’s fairly new to the offensive line, just a two-year starter at right tackle. That hasn’t stopped him from making quite an impression on talent evaluators. Clemmings is handily the best run blocking tackle in this draft, able to overwhelm anyone in his path. His quick feet and length make him a great fit on the more prestigious left side. The only real question on the former pass rusher is how well he will handle speedier pass rushers. A good week solidifies him as a top 15 pick, and it wouldn’t surprise me if he winds up being the first tackle taken…perhaps in the top five.

Baylor QB Bryce Petty. The Bears quarterback is the top prospect here at his position, but that’s sort of like being the fastest turtle. This quarterback class is abysmal. Petty is aiming to prove he belongs as the third QB behind Marcus Mariota and Jameis Winston, and when UCLA’s Brett Hundley declined his Senior Bowl invite it paved the way for Petty to seize the ring. He’s got a decent arm and has proven he can sling it into tight spaces all over the field. Before getting too excited about him as a prospect, two things to keep in mind--he’s overaged at 24 and he’s suffered a broken back, torn up knee and at least two major concussions that caused him to miss games (one in HS). The QB thirst is very real, however, and he’s a potential top 35 overall pick.

UCLA DE Owamagbe Odighizua. The Bruins pass rusher missed all of 2013 with a hip injury, and that caused his profile to fade. A strong senior season (6 sacks, 11.5 tackles for loss, four PDs) put him back on the map. Listed at 6’3” and 270 pounds, he’s got ideal size to play in a 4-3 as a strongside end. The pass rush and team drills, where he’ll often have to deal with a tight end as well as a tackle, will be telling for his draft stock. A good week here and he’s solidly in the top 40 picks. If he doesn’t show twitchiness or refined moves, he could fall to the top of the third round. One of my goals for the week is to learn how to pronounce and type his name without looking it up.

Auburn WR Sammie Coates. He’s got the physical package resembling Julio Jones. A long 6’2”, strong and very fast, Coates is often seen blazing past smaller defenders in Auburn games. Yet his production was inconsistent, with just 34 receptions and four touchdowns. I’ve charted out five Auburn games already (Kansas State, LSU, Miss. St., Alabama and Wisconsin) and he dropped or missed 12 catch opportunities in those games. He didn’t always judge the speed or depth of the throw accurately. In the drills here he’ll be on an island with chances to make plays on the ball not worrying about any safety closing on the ball. He needs to show clean, strong hands and the ability to use his size to dominate smaller DBs.

Florida Atlantic CB D’Joun Smith. If you like rooting for the underdog, D’Joun Smith is the man for you. Playing at lowly-regarded FAU, Smith still managed to stand out. He’s quite instinctive and quick in coverage, able to anticipate routes and steer receivers despite being listed at just 5’10” and 190. The size is an issue that he can help rectify this week. Smith adds to his value by being a top-flight kick returner. Seeing him compete against more prominent competition is a great barometer for how ready he is to make the jump to the NFL and if he’s an outside corner or a slot man once he’s there.

Minnesota RB David Cobb. I really like the game tape I’ve seen on Cobb, where he consistently showed the ability to gash out yards with toughness, vision and an innate ability to set up blocks. The focus here in Mobile will be on how he performs in the other aspects of the position. Can he pick up blitzes? Can he run decent routes and make tough catches? How will he do on kick and punt coverage units? His style of running isn’t flashy and that will make his ancillary skills all the more important.

Washington DT Danny Shelton. My pre-week pick for the first Senior Bowler drafted in April, the most important time for Shelton takes place before the practices even start. His weigh-in will be huge, both figuratively and literally. His weight appeared to balloon for the Huskies bowl game, and one area scout I talked with advised me Shelton fluctuated between 328 and 360 over the last 18 months. If he’s north of 350, it’s a bad sign. He’s occasionally dominant and has surprising range for a nose tackle, but if he’s not in great shape his play declines. I expect Shelton to be a top 10 pick and he solidifies that if he weighs in at 345 and shows vibrancy in drills.

Kentucky DE Za’Darius Smith. His teammate Dupree backed out, and that creates a great opportunity for Smith to shine. He was impressive throughout Shrine Game week. While he’s not a dynamic athlete like Dupree, Smith is crafty and not an athletic slouch in his own right. Already I talked to a scout this morning who projects him to a 3-4 OLB role and wants to see him play in space here in team drills. Smith has the ability to rush inside or outside so he could shine in pass rush drills. He’s a solid third-round pick.

Miami DB Quinten Rollins. No, it’s not The U. but rather the Redhawks of Miami OH. Rollins burst onto the scene with an impressive showing in the Big House at Michigan in what was just his second college football game. He was the starting point guard for the Redhawks basketball team and was noted for his freakish quickness and ball skills as a defensive stopper. Those skills translated to the football field. His feet, hands and hitting ability rocketed him to prominence, and he’s a legit top 50 pick. Interestingly, I know a couple of teams who view the 6’1”, 205 pound Rollins as a safety instead of a corner. His week here will help determine which his better position is at the next level.

The mystery man. Every year some player unexpectedly rises up to prominence with a strong Senior Bowl week, elevating his draft stock a round or two or soaring up from the late first round to No. 1 overall as Eric Fisher did two years ago. Some of my top candidates for that honor this year are:

Utah CB Eric Rowe, already the #3 CB on my board after converting from safety in 2014

Samford safety Jaquiski Tartt, a big thumper from the FCS level

Colorado State tackle Ty Sambrailo

Auburn QB Nick Marshall

Arizona State DT Marcus Hardison

Washington State WR Vince Mayle