NFL makes notable change to predraft process

The pre-draft process will see a noticeable tweak beginning in 2024. Three postseason all-star games will soon be allowed to extend invites to draft-eligible underclassmen.

The NFL announced Wednesday it will permit underclassmen to play in the Senior Bowl and other pre-draft showcases, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com notes. While “Senior Bowl” will carry less meaning, the East-West Shrine Bowl and HBCU Legacy Bowl will also be permitted to extend invites to non-senior players. These changes will be effective immediately.

In addition to the actual games, players use the practices to showcase their skills for NFL personnel. The Senior Bowl’s practices are a prime scouting event annually, bringing all 32 teams’ staffs to Mobile, Ala. Wednesday’s announcement will change how those rosters are constructed, likely taking spots away from seniors, with the fringe Mobile candidates potentially needing to play in the lower-tier all-star games. As InsidetheLeague.com’s Neil Stratton offers, the NFL effectively only endorsing three all-star events will negatively impact the Hula Bowl and the other round of all-star games. Those Alabama-based workouts, however, will likely generate more buzz due to the caliber of prospects that will be eligible for invites.

Players who have been out of high school for three years are draft-eligible, meaning this will impact juniors and redshirt sophomores. With the NCAA’s COVID-19 policy extending an additional year of college eligibility to players in school during the pandemic, NFL draft classes have seen an uptick of mid-20-somethings in recent years. That era winding down stands to return rookie classes to their usual age range, though the NIL development and the transfer portal have given players more appealing options to stay in school for their senior seasons.

But the opportunity to compete against top competition at Senior Bowl practice will be a draw for underclassmen, who previously only had the Combine and their respective pro days as official venues to change their pre-draft stock. Sixty-nine juniors entered this year’s draft, per ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter, doing so without any all-star game opportunities. It will be interesting to see the Senior Bowl’s roster makeup in 2024. Per usual, several of the top prospects in the upcoming class are draft-eligible juniors. This includes top QBs Caleb Williams and Drake Maye, whose Senior Bowl workouts — should the USC and North Carolina prospects choose to participate — will be highly anticipated.