Eagles Move Into Day 2 of Draft with Plenty of Options
PHILADELPHIA – On to the next day.
It’s the 24-hour rule players talk about after a game, win or lose. They enjoy it for 24 hours then move on.
Same with the front office.
The Eagles won on Thursday night, ganging up with their NFC East archrivals, the Dallas Cowboys, on their other division rival, New York Giants.
The Eagles and Cowboys conspired against the Giants, leaving them in the dust at pick 11, where they would have taken Alabama Heisman Trophy winner DeVonta Smith had the Eagles and Cowboys not teamed up against them.
Now, it’s on to Day 2 and rounds two and three of the 2021 NFL Draft on Friday night.
GM Howie Roseman said the Eagles stayed true to their board on Thursday night, and it is something they must continue to do as the drat proceeds.
“I think because of how many picks we have over the next two years we really don't want to get in a position - we've made some mistakes forcing picks and positions, so we've spent so much time on this draft and process and so much discussion about the players in this draft that we're not going to reach,” said Roseman.
“We're going to take the best guys. … we're going to be sitting there (Friday) morning and know we're going to get a really good player. Maybe it's at a position that can come in right away and fill a need, but maybe it's just a guy that we know is going to be part of the core of our team going forward as we climb the mountain again.”
The Eagles have one less pick on Friday than they did before Thursday’s first-round began, after sending their second third-rounder to the Cowboys, pick No. 84 overall, to move ahead of New York.
That leaves them with the fifth pick in the second round and the sixth pick in the third, unless, of course, Roseman does some more wheeling and dealing to find a way back into the third round.
There are a couple of players who slid out of the first round that could be available for the Eagles, including plenty of cornerbacks, a position that many believe will be addressed in the second round.
Cornerbacks still available:
Florida State’s Asante Samuel, Jr.
Georgia’s Tyson Campbell.
Syracuse’s Ifeatu Melifonwu.
Kentucky’s Kelvin Joseph.
Central Florida’s Aaron Robinson.
There are also safeties who would be good fits and include:
TCU’s Trevon Moehrig.
Central Florida’s Richie Grant.
Oregon’s Jevon Holland.
With only the Jaguars, Jets, Falcons, and Dolphins picking ahead of the Eagles in the second round, one of those will still be there.
Or the Eagles could go with an edge rusher or defensive lineman, and there will be some of those at their disposal including perhaps:
Alabama DT Christian Barmore.
Washington DT Levi Onwuzurike.
Georgia edge Azeez Ojulari.
Wake Forest edge Carlos Basham.
There’s also an intriguing hybrid from Notre Dame, linebacker/safety Jeremiah Owusu Koramoah and plenty of interior offensive linemen such as Oklahoma’s Creed Humphrey and Ohio State’s Wyatt Davis.
Bottom line is, with this much talent still around, there could be a chance that Roseman drops back a few spots to try to regain that lost second pick in the third round or something else.
They also have some potential ammunition in tight end Zach Ertz, who many believe will be traded before the weekend is over.
As for the pick they have in the third round – the 70th overall – the possibilities are endless.
Ed Kracz is the publisher of SI.com’s EagleMaven and co-host of the Eagles Unfiltered Podcast. Check out the latest Eagles news at www.SI.com/NFL/Eagles and please follow him on Twitter: @kracze.
