Kelly Bryant Recovers Nicely in Day 3 After Shaky Start at East-West Shrine Bowl Practice
By Michael Luciano
The first few days of practice at the East-West Shrine Bowl weren't kind to the four quarterbacks on the West Team. Utah's Tyler Huntley was wildly inconsistent, North Texas' Mason Fine lost his deep accuracy before rediscovering it, and Yale's Kurt Rawlings failed to showcase an NFL caliber arm and left before Day 3 even began.
Perhaps the biggest name here, Missouri's Kelly Bryant, struggled mightily with accuracy in the first day of practice, as his beautiful deep throws were offset by bad misses on short passes.
Bryant, who threw for 2,215 yards, 15 TDs, and six picks at Missouri, also showed off a Blake Bortles-like hitch in his throwing motion that elongates it and makes it difficult to snap the ball out in rhythm.
Even with all of that on Day 1, Bryant has been the best of the West quarterbacks over the last two days of practice. He was given more opportunities to throw on the run and show off his very strong arm, and doing so made him look like a much more relaxed player.
He and Indiana wide receiver Nick Westbrook hooked up several times on what was a great day for the former Clemson Tiger turned Missouri Tiger.
Bryant's running skill, arm talent, and playmaking ability when the play breaks down all earned exemplary marks. However, for an NFL team to consider drafting him, he needs to showcase more of the accuracy and consistency he exhibited on Day 3.