Eagles' Jason Kelce Reviews Each of Philly's Draft Picks
PHILADELPHIA – Rookies, assorted first- and second-year players, and tryout hopefuls made cameos in South Philly on the first weekend after the 2023 NFL Draft.
When they return, they will be with many of those who helped take the Philadelphia Eagles to the Super Bowl last season, as the first batch of OTAs runs from May 23-25.
Veteran center Jason Kelce gave his takes on each of the team’s draft picks during a recent episode of "New Heights," the podcast he does with his brother Travis.
Here’s what Kelce had to say about each of the selections:
On Jalen Carter: “He gets to enter the league as the No. 9 pick overall, clearly has the talent to be a premier player in this league. You don’t get picked that high if you don’t have the upside to make that happen.
“So, as long as he does things right, as long he goes about it the right way, as long as he dedicates himself, as long as he becomes a professional, he has the chance to have a life-changing career in the NFL.”
On Nolan Smith: Donna Kelce, the mom of Jason and Travis, announced this pick during the draft in Kansas City.
“Technically an outside backer, but he’s an edge player. He’s playing on the line. …This is a guy who’s unique because he's a smaller edge player. He only fits certain types of schemes and we happen to run one of them (so) we’re going to be able to utilize him a lot. We do some similar things right now with Haason Reddick.
“Nolan Smith is going to get an opportunity to be in a great room and learn from guys who are really, really good at their craft. The only reason he’s probably there at pick 30 is because he is such a unique player. He’s not a 270-pound D-end that’s going to play in a lot of these 4-3 schemes. He’s playing a 3-4.”
On Tyler Steen: “Big guy from Alabama, can play guard or tackle. We’ve had a really, really good offensive line for a number of years in Philly, and part of that is the organization just invests in drafting and accumulating on O-line, and D-line.
“Obviously, we lost Isaac Seumalo, our starting right guard, we lost Andre Dillard who was our next in line at guard and tackle, so we needed to get another guard/tackle, that’s just the reality of it. Drafting guard/tackles from Alabama is not a bad place to draft guys from.
“He’s big. The power is impressive when you watch him play and I’m looking forward to getting Tyler Steen over there at Stoutland University to see what he’s got.”
On Sydney Brown: “Not going to lie, have watched absolutely zero tape of Sydney Brown, but everything everybody says is he’s a heat-seeking missile playing with reckless abandon, and that’s how I like my safeties, so let’s hope he’s doing that in the NFL.”
On Kelee Ringo: “Another Bulldog up in the building. The Philadelphia Bulldogs. It’s a good idea to get guys from the best team in college. Not a bad game plan. He’s another guy that I have seen zero tape on.
"Honestly, even if I’d seen tape on him, I don’t know how to evaluate cornerbacks. In general, if the receiver isn’t catching a lot of passes to his side, that’s a pretty good corner.”
On Tanner McKee: “Philadelphia is always going to invest in three positions – O-line, D-line, and the other one is quarterback. We know firsthand the necessity to have good backup quarterbacks.
“…It’s always a good idea to have at least three quarterbacks if not four that you’re comfortable with, and this kid’s going to get an opportunity to prove himself.
"We’ve been known as the quarterback factory at one point when we selected Jalen Hurts in the second round back when Carson Wentz was still the starting quarterback, so they’re still keeping the factory up and running a little bit.”
On Moro Ojomo: “Again, haven’t seen a lot of this kid. Heard he’s a sawed-off shotgun. He’ll be a nice boulder there in the middle of the defense.
"Just let him sit there, take up double teams and just create a bunch of gunk. He gunked up the pipes of the outside zone and all the other things. He’s a space taker.”
Ed Kracz covers the Philadelphia Eagles for SI's EaglesToday.
Please follow him and our Eagles coverage on Twitter at @kracze.
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