WVU LB Tony Fields is Raising His Draft Stock at the Reese's Senior Bowl

The Mountaineer linebacker could now be a day two pick in this year's draft.

In his one season at West Virginia, linebacker Tony Fields II tallied 88 tackles, four tackles for loss, one sack, one interception, and four QB hits. At season's end, Fields was named the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year and was invited to the Reese's Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama.

Fields II is widely considered as one of the biggest risers in this week's practices at the Senior Bowl, so to help us get a better idea of what the future holds for the former Mountaineer, we brought in Zack Patraw of the NFL Draft Bible on Sports Illustrated.

Below is Patraw's overall evaluation of Fields and where he may end up in this year's draft. 

Strengths - Fields is a WILL backer that is exceptionally talented in run and chase situations. He has tremendous burst and is speedy with great flexibility. He takes proper angles when pursuing ball carriers to the boundary. He’s proven to be a reliable run stopper near the line of scrimmage and does a great job at avoiding climbing offensive linemen. He’s smooth transitioning from his backpedal to closing downhill. He’s best when he’s in space and is reliable when he needs to make open-field tackles. He has plenty of remaining development still but the potential and upside are there with Fields.

Weaknesses - Fields is an undersized linebacker that lacks length. He measured in slightly above average height for linebackers at the Senior Bowl and was also the lightest. His arm length and hand size were in the bottom half at the position as well. On film, he struggles to stack and shed linebackers and can struggle with physicality at the point of attack. He could do a better job at finding his landmark when he’s dropping in zone coverage and squeezing passing lanes. Getting him into an NFL strength training program will be essential for his development and upside.

Draft Projection Now/Ceiling - Before this week at the Senior Bowl, Fields likely would have fallen into the middle portion of day three of the NFL Draft. He’s stood out to many scouts around the league this week. With the number of players that have opted out or underperformed, Fields has done enough to be considered at the backend of day two.

Team Fit - A team that needs a linebacker that can navigate space and play strictly in an off-ball role will be ecstatic to make him apart of their team. A defense like the Minnesota Vikings, who struggled on defense this year, could make him apart of one of their sub-packages. The Atlanta Falcons could desperately use a linebacker with Fields’ traits and have proven to favor undersized linebackers. The Carolina Panthers have Shaq Thompson but developing Fields behind him for a couple of years and using him in specific packages would be vital to his development.

You will be able to watch Fields in action this Saturday during the Reese's Senior Bowl which is set to kickoff at 2 p.m. on the NFL Network.

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