2027 NFL Draft Stock Watch: Devan Thompkins, CJ Carr & 8 Prospects Who Dominated Week 10

It’s Thursday, which means it’s time to go over which NFL Draft prospects stood out this past weekend of college football. NFL Draft talk is starting to heat up as we get closer to December. Next thing you know, it’ll be January, and the Senior Bowl will be taking place.

With all that in mind, let’s get into it. Here are some players who played well in Week 10 of college football action.

Stock up

Austin Simmons, QB, Missouri

The Tigers lost to Texas, but Simmons once again had a great performance. He finished with 253 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions on the day. What hurt Simmons most were the dropped passes from his receivers; his wideouts had eight drops, hurting his overall performance.

Simmons was still on target and showed good ability to layer balls over the middle. His throw to Cayden Lee downfield was a little off target, and Lee had to adjust, but he layered the ball perfectly over the defender’s head.

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The one throw that hurt the most, seeing it dropped, was the fade route to Naeshaun Montgomery, in which Simmons placed it perfectly in the hands of Montgomery; he just couldn’t come down with it. He also had another dropped pass on a deep post route, where he put it on an absolute line to his receiver, who dropped it in the end zone.

Another strong game for Simmons, who’s been rising up boards all year long.

Rasheem Biles, LB, Texas

Biles has started to assert himself as one of the better linebackers in this class. What showed out against Missouri was the ability to drop back into coverage and cover routes over the middle. Biles covered a seam route with ease, showing fluidity in his hips.

Not only can he make plays vertically, but he can also make plays laterally. Biles had a nice fill in the run game against zone runs, showing he can make the right reads in the run game. Now, physicality is lacking overall, but there’s no doubt he’s the type of athlete teams will fall in love with.

Dominick Giudice, OL, Missouri

One player who hasn’t gotten attention is Giudice out of Missouri. He played guard for the Tigers last season, but shifted over to center this season. He has great size at 6-foot-3 and 305 pounds. Giudice is playing at an elite level this season, giving up zero sacks and five pressures this year.

That same dominance continued against Texas, as he gave up zero pressures. He’s shown a good understanding of being able to work on zone runs all season for the Tigers. He did so again against Texas, reaching the second level, working up to the second level, and creating lanes for runners. Not only that, but he can work in pass protection effectively, especially picking up stunts. He should get more love as the draft process progresses.

Devan Thompkins, DL, Alabama

We will be pounding the table for Thompkins to be a first-round pick come April. He is exactly the rare body NFL teams are looking for at 6-foot-5 and 300 pounds. He once again showed out in prime time against LSU. Thompkins had his best game of the season, having two sacks, two tackles and two tackles for loss.

Throughout the game, he showed off his pure power off the edge, collapsing the pocket. We saw that power essentially end the game when he bull-rushed Jordan Seaton into the pocket and forced Sam Leavitt into a sack. Not only that, but he showed a nice spin move, the ability to rip around the corner and twitch throughout his rushes. Thompkins seems to just keep getting better, which makes him such a fun prospect to watch.

Jackson Harris, WR, LSU

Harris just continues to impress as the season progresses. He’s had two straight 150+ yard games and keeps rising up boards. Against Alabama, you saw real control over his routes and superb body control. Harris ran a stop-and-go that had great hip sync on the fake stop, then exploding out of the dip to get down the field. He’s not just someone who runs deep routes. Against LSU, he was utilized on screen passes and quick stop routes on the outside.

When talkinag bout these bigger receivers, people tend to assume they’re just guys who can push the field vertically. Harris isn’t one of those guys. He can run a full route tree, win in tight situations, and has the hands to make tough catches underneath.

CJ Carr, QB, Notre Dame

It was the biggest game of the weekend, and Carr made sure to play well. Over 300 yards and three touchdown passes against Miami. What’s stood out about Carr this season is his reluctance to take sacks. He has a pressure-to-sack rate of 3.5 percent and once again avoided the pressure he saw against Miami. He navigated the pocket with pure poise and adjusted to make throws downfield.

Carr was even able to operate out of structure. He had the one play where he started to scramble to his right, then looped back around to the left, making a throw across his body. Even while avoiding the pressure, his ball placement was shaky but, overall, outstanding. The throw to Jordan Faison for a touchdown was just excellent anticipation. He also had another throw working through his entire progression, starting on the strong side, then coming back to the post for a touchdown. Carr rose up boards with ease after this performance.

Lance Heard, OT, Kentucky

Heard may have allowed three pressures in this game (season-high), but don’t let that fool you. He was dominant against this Tennessee front. He matched up with Xavier Gilliam a couple of times throughout the game, and absolutely erased him from the game. He drove Gilliam into the ground on a run game rep and, in pass protection, used his length to erase Gilliam completely.

What I took away from the film the most was just how towering Heard looks against the competition he’s facing. Yes, his movement skills and balance can improve. But looking at the pure body, he’s a first-round pick. He’ll get a lot of love come draft time.

Qua Moss, S, Tennessee

If you watch any game from the Tennessee defense, there’s a good chance you’ll see No. 6 around the ball. The burst and acceleration stand out from Moss when he’s tracking the ball carrier across the field. He did a great job tracking outside runs, pass routes, and getting on top of post routes. With the active Moss, he forced two fumbles in this game, which is a testament to his effort on the defensive side of the ball.

Collin Dixon, WR, Illinois

Dixon has had one of the best seasons in college football at receiver. He’s up to 910 yards and 12 touchdowns. He continued that dominance against Nebraska, having 129 yards and two touchdowns.

Dixon is a 6-foot-1, 215-pound receiver who has great acceleration throughout the field. Illinois used him on some motion routes at the goal line, and you can just see the sheer burst he has to beat the man coverage on him, getting in for two touchdowns. Not only that, but he has great hands and concentration downfield to make contested catches. Dixon is up to 15 contested catches this season. The one big issue with his game is the nuance in his route running, but he has the attributes that NFL teams will love in the later rounds.

Ashton Hampton, CB, Clemson

The sheer dominance from Hampton continued from against Syracuse. He had two pass breakups and one interception. Once again, he showed the length a corner needs to get his hands on receivers and erase them from a game. Throughout the game, Hampton got targeted eight times, allowing three receptions for 23 yards.

Hampton has great skills to pounce on receivers, attacking the ball to create pass breakups, which makes him such a fun prospect for so many. The one aspect of his game that worries me is how stagnant he is off the line. Against receivers who know how to defeat his press and get by the length, it could cause trouble for him. Throughout this game, he struggled to turn his head and look back for the ball, as well as with straight-line speed.

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