Dabo Swinney: 'If They Pass On Deshaun Watson, They're Passing On Michael Jordan'

(CBS) Clemson coach Dabo Swinney doesn't know where quarterback Deshaun Watson will be chosen in this spring's NFL Draft, but he does believe this much: Anyone who passes on Watson will deeply regret it.

Swinney made that much known Tuesday at the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Ala., where he ambitiously compared Watson to Michael Jordan, who notably was taken No. 3 overall in the 1984 NBA Draft.

"He's humble, the same guy every day and always ready, he comes to every meeting prepared. that's how you change things," Swinney said of Watson in a video posted by Mary Kay Cabot, the Brown beat writer for the Plain Dealer. "You change a culture through -- for me, it's through discipline and recruiting and staffing and all that stuff -- for them, it's decision-making, it's who you pick. I'm just telling ya: If they pass on Deshaun Watson, they're passing on Michael Jordan. I'm just telling ya. I don't know what the heck I'm talking about. I'm just an old funky college coach, but Deshaun Watson is the best by a long shot."

After leading Clemson to a national title, Watson chose not to participate in the Senior Bowl, where the Bears coaching staff is leading the North team. Watson will instead focus on training for the NFL Combine, which begins Feb. 15 in Indianapolis. The Bears' evaluation of him there will be important, as they could be selecting a quarterback with their No. 3 overall selection. The Browns hold the No. 1 pick and are in need of a quarterback as well. Watson is considered a top quarterback prospect along with Notre Dame's DeShone Kizer and North Carolina's Mitch Trubisky.

Watson threw for 4,593 yards and 41 touchdowns against 17 interceptions in 2016, while also rushing for 629 yards and nine touchdowns.