The NFL draft is the second major event in the new NFL league year. This year, it will be held in Nashville, Tennessee on April 25th through the 27th. The first round will be on Thursday night. I always get excited for that night because the NFL draft is always held around my birthday weekend. So its kind of like a mini birthday present from the Philadelphia Eagles depending how good the pick turns out. With that being said, I figured I’d give a preview into what the Eagles can do with their draft ammo. Plus what I think they will do with their picks if they decide to keep them.
What picks do the Eagles have?
Heading into the NFL draft, the Eagles will have seven draft picks. They have a first rounder (pick 25), two second round picks (53 and 57), two fourth round picks (127 and 138), a fifth round pick (pick 163), and a 6th round pick (pick 197). Knowing how Howie Roseman likes to trade, it would not be surprising if trade couple of them for a future draft.
Should the Eagles draft for depth or for need?
Even before NFL free agency started, the Eagles already had a young team coming back. Yes, they needed to sign maybe one or two corner backs. Maybe figure out the running back situation as well, but they didn’t have a ton of holes to fill. They re-signed Ronald Darby at a low risk/high reward contract. They also traded for Jordan Howard, which is a move that I love a lot. So I think with the draft, the only glaring hole or need is offensive line. Jason “the bodyguard” Peters isn’t getting any younger. It also seems like we have a revolving door at left guard past couple season. So depending whos there at 25, we should draft for need. If there’s no one there that you think can contribute this year then definitely draft for depth or trade down.
So Jimbo, who should we pick in the draft at 25?
As stated, the Eagles have traded out of the first round before. If they’re not in love with the players that are at 25, then I’d be ok trading out of the first round. If Clelin Ferrell from Clemson is there, they should pick him, though. Reasoning being is, yes we re-signed Brandon Graham but he’s getting old. Also, Chris Long isn’t sure if he’s playing this year or not. Pair Ferrell with Barnett and have Fletcher Cox in the middle and we have a good young group of linemen. We can also draft a versatile o-lineman here that can play guard/tackle. By doing this, maybe pair couple picks together to move up in the second round. If we do this then we may be able to get Tillery from Notre Dame.
What positions should we draft with the rest of our picks?
Assuming that we don’t trade any of the seven draft picks, I would defintly draft a quarterback in the later rounds. Maybe like the fifth or sixth round because you’ll never know what you’ll get there. Remember that guy that got drafted by the New England Patriots from Michigan? He turned out ok. With our second round picks, I would look at offensive line help, especially if we picked a defensive lineman with the first round pick.
So it’s going to be an interesting draft either way I think. A lot of story lines going in. Who are the Arizona Cardinals taking? Are the Oakland Raiders going to use all three first round picks on players? I just hope whoever the Eagles pick turns out to be a good birthday gift for me. Until next week, its your good friend Jimbo signing out.
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