EAGLES NFL DRAFT PREVIEW: The Linebackers
Could a 40-year drought be ending?
When it comes to the top of the NFL Draft and the Philadelphia Eagles, almost all of the focus has centered on wide receiver and which prospect in what is a very deep class will general manager Howie Roseman select at No. 21 overall.
Thinking becomes conventional for a reason and the Eagles understand the need at that position and how much quarterback Carson Wentz would be helped by the presence of a significant playmaker.
That said, if the board doesn’t fall in the correct way for Roseman on virtual draft night, what's next?
Let’s take a deep dive into a potential path that could have the first off-ball linebacker heading to Philadelphia at the top of the draft since Jerry Robinson in 1979.
It’s very unlikely the consensus top 3 at WR - Oklahoma’s CeeDee Lamb and the Alabama duo of Jerry Jeudy and Henry Ruggs - will be available. Meanwhile, after sending two picks to Detroit for cornerback Darius Slay earlier this offseason it remains unlikely that Roseman wants to sacrifice more draft assets to go up and get one of those three.
That could leave LSU’s Justin Jefferson on the radar, the very definition of a playmaker at college football’s highest level. Philadelphia’s reported interest in Jefferson is both well-documented and real, something that could mean little or turn out to be a signal for another organization behind the Eagles that might have an interest.
What if Jefferson isn’t there?
Plan A is the simple route: select Baylor WR Denzel Mims.
Plan B could be the trade-down scenario to grab a talented receiving option with some injury concerns like Arizona State’s Brandon Aiyuk or TCU’s Jalen Reagor.
Plan C, however, is stay true to how the board is stacked and select a prospect at a different position, something that is a bigger possibility than most realize with the depth of the WR class in this draft.
“I think it’s just the amount of really good players in the draft at that position," said highly-regarded Baltimore GM Eric DeCosta earlier this week. "In most years, you probably expect those players to fill up the first three rounds. We think this year that there’s a really good chance to get a guy that can probably be a starter for you in the fifth round of the draft."
As for Roseman, pay attention to what he told reporters last month about the receivers already in his building.
“I think we do view the receiver position maybe different than it's publicly viewed,” said Roseman. “I understand where we were toward the end of the year and who was out there and we've got to increase the talent level, but we're also excited to get some of those guys back, who were not healthy. And we're also excited for young guys to take another step.”
Behind the scenes the Eagles have been clear they want to add a young wideout who can grow with Wentz but that doesn't have to happen at 21.
Former Eagles scout and lead NFL Network draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah explored the Plan C path in his latest mock draft in which Jefferson came off the board at 20 and the Eagles stayed put to take Oklahoma LB Kenneth Murray.
The underreported aspect in all of this is the need for Philadelphia is probably even greater at LB than WR.
Currently, the only real given for Ken Flajole is converted Nebraska safety Nate Gerry. A bulked-up former fifth-round pick from 2017 who developed into a competent option last season when the two top linebackers were supposed to be Nigel Bradham and Kamu Grugier-Hill.
Turns out Bradham was still the on-field leader when he wasn’t injured or no-showing preseason games or rehab appointments.
KGH was seemingly on his way in training camp when a sprained knee started a series of issues that ultimately ended with a disconnect between him and the organization over both concussion reporting and a painful back injury that Grugier-Hill tried to power through.
Currently, Bradham is still on the free-agent market after the Eagles declined his pricey team option and KGH is in Miami after signing a one-year prove-it deal. That means if the Eagles had to line today - and luckily they don’t - the options at the second level are Gerry, 2019 undrafted rookie T.J. Edwards, 2019 in-season trade-pickup Duke Riley, former CFL star Alex Singleton and bargain-bin free-agent signing Jatavis Brown.
Murray remains a bit raw but is off the charts physically for what the NFL looks for in a modern LB with prototypical size, length, and speed.
“I think I’m an extremely instinctual player," said Murray during the NFL Scouting Combine when discussing his strengths. "I watch between five and six hours of tape every day. First guy in the building in the morning with my position coach watching film. All those things, they pay off and able to use them.
"So I think my intelligence. Something that here I’m just trying to harp on when I’m in meetings, formal interviews with teams is just letting guys know, letting guys see how smart I am.”
The other potential option is LSU’s Patrick Queen, who doesn’t have the size Murray does at just 6-foot-1 and 227 pounds but is more advanced in coverage right now.
“There's a lot that separates us as a whole,” said Queen of the LB class. “I feel like my game just goes to another level when I step on the field. I'm fast, explosive, can stop the run to play pass coverage. So I feel I'm just very versatile in what I can do.”
Later options start with Logan Wilson, who arrived in Wyoming as a safety before bulking up to play at the second level and has a tremendous upside in coverage, which projects well when trying to evaluate three-down LB prospects.
BUILDING THE PERFECT LINEBACKER
Instincts - Evan Weaver, California - Weaver was the leading tackler in the nation for a reason - he keys and diagnoses like a 10-year veteran.
Run stopper - Kenneth Murray, Oklahoma - The definition of a modern mike LB with the speed to run with any RB to the edge and the thump to intimidate them.
Pass coverage - Francis Bernard, Utah - The former running back understands the routes he’s about to see and that gives him a leg up on just about everyone in the class.
Blitzer - Markus Bailey, Purdue - Sometimes it isn’t speed or strength, it’s subtlety when it comes to the blitz and Bailey has an innate feel for setting up opposing offensive lineman.
Speed - Jordyn Brooks, Texas Tech - When you talk about field fast, start with Brooks who comes across like a heat-seeking missile.
Green dot - Shaquille Quarterman, Miami - The QB of the defense days are over for LBs but if the worm ever turns and old becomes new again Quarterman is the old-school MLB who can control everything from the huddle to adjustments on-field.
EAGLES MAVEN TOP 10:
1. Isaiah Simmons, Clemson
2. Kenneth Murray, Oklahoma
3. Patrick Queen, LSU
4. Zack Baun, Wisconsin
5. Malik Harrison, Ohio State
6. Logan Wilson, Wyoming
7. Jordan Brooks, Texas Tech
8. Josh Uche, Michigan
9. Evan Weaver, California
10. Markus Bailey, Purdue
Sleeper - Dante Olson, Montana
Boom or Bust - Isaiah Simmons, Clemson
John McMullen covers the Eagles for SI.com. You can listen to John every day on SIRIUSXM’s Tony Bruno Show with Harry Mayes and on ESPN 97.3 in South Jersey. You can reach him at jmcmullen44@gmail.com or on Twitter @JFMcMullen
