Mel Kiper on Oklahoma's Perrion Winfrey: 'Wreaking Havoc; Very Disruptive Player'

In his latest mock draft, ESPN's draft guru projects Winfrey as the first Sooner off the board in the middle of the second round.

ESPN NFL Draft guru Mel Kiper loves him some Perrion Winfrey.

Kiper participated in a national conference call on Thursday and expressed an appreciation both for how Winfrey has excelled in the pre-draft process as well as how he played noseguard last year at Oklahoma.

“Perrion Winfrey had a great Senior Bowl,” Kiper said (just before the 22-minute mark in the video above). “The way they utilized him at Oklahoma didn’t allow for the big numbers. But boy, I’ll tell you, he brought his game face to play football in Mobile (AL, home of the Senior Bowl). Game day, he was out there wrecking havoc. He really helped his stock, I believe, during the process, and I’d say he’s a solid mid-second (round), late-second, at worst.”

Winfrey was the MVP of the Senior Bowl and was a standout in practices leading up to the game. He also put up good numbers both at the NFL Scouting Combine and at his pro day in Norman.

Winfrey has said in multiple interviews that NFL scouts and coaches gave him ample indication that his time at noseguard the last two seasons in Alex Grinch’s defense didn’t maximize his talents.

That played out as Winfrey stood out in one-on-one situations in Mobile, and that caused Kiper to take another look at the former junior college transfer.

“Winfrey, through the process, did a heck of a job,” Kiper said. “If you went back at Oklahoma, you could see the way they moved him around. When he was in the right spot and position, even through double teams, he worked his way through. He was explosive into the backfield, very disruptive player.”

In his latest mock draft released on Wednesday (requires subscription), Kiper projects Winfrey as the first Sooner taken off the board — by the Minnesota Vikings with 14th pick of the second round, No. 46 overall.

“Winfrey is more of a classic 3-technique penetrating tackle, and he was one of the biggest risers after his performance at the Senior Bowl,” Kiper wrote. “Linemen couldn't block him. He didn't always get the chance to create havoc at Oklahoma. Winfrey could be great next to nose tackle Dalvin Tomlinson for Minnesota.”