Eagles May Have Been Ready To Take Shedeur Sanders, But Pivot To Select Cornerback

The Cleveland Browns jumped a spot ahead of the Philadelphia Eagles in the fifth round of the NFL Draft to take Shedeur Sanders, so Philly went with a Central Florida cornerback instead.

Florida Gators wide receiver Tank Hawkins (10) outruns UCF Knights defensive back Mac McWilliams (20) during the first half at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville, FL on Saturday, October 5, 2024. [Doug Engle/Gainesville Sun] | Doug Engle/Gainesville Sun / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

PHILADELPHIA – The Eagles must have been ready to take Shedeur Sanders with the 145th overall pick in the NFL Draft, right? Why else did the Cleveland Browns trade up to pick 144 and select the slip, sliding quarterback from Colorado at that spot?

NFL Media's Ian Rapoport said that Cleveland was fearful that Philly was going to take Sanders, so they made the move ahead of them.

With Sanders gone, the Eagles pivoted to the defense, taking their fourth defender of the draft when they selected cornerback Mac McWilliams from the University of Central Florida in the fifth round.

McWilliams is a 5-10, 190-pound cornerback who originally began his career at University of Alabama-Birmingham, where he played alongside his older brother, Fish McWilliams. The two brothers were co-captains together.

In 2024, McWilliams started 11 games, making 32 tackles with one sack, an interception, two pass breakups, and a forced fumble.

This is the NFL Media scouting report:

“Tenacious cornerback whose 2024 tape helped spotlight his toughness and short-area athleticism. McWilliams is best in off coverages. He plays with anticipation and burst to swarm the top of the route from his pedal and is quick to pounce on zone throws. He has average long speed and lacks length.

“His failure to locate deep throws is concerning. There is zero hesitation when it’s time to step downhill and support the run, though, and he’s a physical tackler who can do it on his own. McWilliams’ 2023 tape was a mess, but he was much improved in 2024 and looks capable of finding backup work as a nickelback for a zone-heavy team.”

He could eventually find himself the backup to Cooper DeJean in the slot.

General manager Howie Roseman started the day by taking defensive tackle Ty Robinson from Nebraska with the 111th overall selection. He owned the 130th pick but traded back into the fifth round with the Jets. In addition to the pick of McWilliams at 145 they got in that deal, the Eagles also received New York’s sixth-round choice at 207 overall.

The thinking of perhaps trading back from 130 was that one of their top 30 visit and player they liked, Iowa State offensive tackle Jalen Travis went 127 to the Colts.

The Eagles still have three more picks to make in the fifth round and now have two in the sixth.

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