Bo Nix's NFL Draft stock is already taking hits at Senior Bowl practice

We have arrived at this part of the offseason where we will nitpick NFL Draft prospects to death and then some. Former Oregon Ducks and Auburn Tigers quarterback Bo Nix is having a rough go of it at Senior Bowl practice down in Mobile on Wednesday. The native Alabamian is back in his home state with all of the scouting world to see. He was a great college football player, but the NFL awaits him.

As the NFL season draws to its close, Nix is one of six draft-eligible quarterbacks who could conceivably go in the first round. USC's Caleb Williams, North Carolina's Drake Maye and LSU's Jayden Daniels are top-10 locks. Nix will be duking it out with Michigan's J.J. McCarthy and Washington's Michael Penix Jr. for the fourth quarterback off the board. What could go wrong here?

Nix spent his first three years of college ball at Auburn. It was his birthright to quarterback the Tigers, and he was sort of okay at it. While he showed promise under Gus Malzahn, it went to hell in a hand basket when Bryan Harsin took over the reins and then proceeded to drive this thing into the ditch. Nix transferred to Oregon to play for defensive-minded Dan Lanning and played tremendous football.

Unfortunately, some NFL scouts will cringe remember this four-play sequence during Senior Bowl practice that was tweeted out by Mike Giardi for all the world to see. Quicksand can be brutal, man...

I think Nix is still a first-round pick because he will interview well, but he has to go to the right team.

Bo Nix struggled for extended stretches during Senior Bowl practice

Look. I have covered Nix for his entire collegiate career, spanning from 2019 at Auburn to 2023 at Oregon. He is a polarizing draft prospect to say the least, but I am not going to bury the guy because he is what he is. Where Nix could be coming off the board in the first round may be the best thing for him. He would thrive going to franchises picking in that range like Minnesota, Las Vegas or Seattle.

Where I am concerned is that he is only QB5 on my draft board, behind Williams, Maye, Daniels and McCarthy in that order. I have him ahead of Penix strictly because of the former Washington quarterback's injury concerns. Although upwards of six quarterbacks could go in the first round, what if only four do? What if Nix is deemed a second-round grade after having exhausted his eligibility?

See if bad Senior Bowl tape drops him down to the second round, Nix could be screwed. He would be coming off the board high enough to go to a bad team picking at the top of round two. The reason why that is a huge problem is he may be asked to start, but will be given a very short leash to do so. If he struggles, the rug will be pulled out from under him like so many second-round picks before him.

Again, because I think he will interview well and do well on the whiteboard, I suspect he will still be a top-32 selection this spring. The possibility of having him sit for a year on a contending team with a deep roster could be huge for him. I think the Los Angeles Rams could be in the market for a quarterback in his draft range. This is all about getting the fifth-year option as well if you draft him.

The last thing Nix would want is to have his stock take a huge hit like Will Levis did this past offseason.