Bijan Robinson or Defense? Eagles Experts Split on NFL Draft Pick at No. 10
As the calendar gets ready to flip to April, general manager Howie Roseman and the Philadelphia Eagles now have less than one month until an NFL Draft in which they will have just six total picks, but two in the first round.
The highest of those six picks is at No. 10 overall, which the Eagles acquired from the New Orleans Saints last April. Despite ultimately reaching the Super Bowl, the Eagles now find themselves with the 10th overall selection by virtue of a 7-10 campaign from the Saints in the first year of the Dennis Allen Era.
Here's a look at what a variety of experts currently believe that the Eagles will do with their top pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
John McMullen of Sports Illustrated: Calijah Kancey - Defensive Tackle, Pittsburgh
Despite size concerns -- Kancey is listed at 6-1, 281 pounds -- McMullen says that he is "buying the hype" on the former Pitt Panther. In three collegiate seasons, Kancey had 16 sacks and 34.5 tackles for a loss. Kancey would join Fletcher Cox, new signee Kentavius Street and last year's first-round pick, Jordan Davis, on the interior of the defensive line. He would help to replace Ndamukong Suh and Linval Joseph, both of whom are still free agents.
Ed Kracz of Sports Illustrated: Paris Johnson - Offensive Tackle, Ohio State
Kracz acknowledges the intrigue of taking running back Bijan Robinson at No. 10, but ultimately reminds readers that the Eagles have had sustained success building depth on both lines. Johnson played right guard for the Buckeyes prior to transitioning to left tackle, so he could co-exist with Lane Johnson and Jordan Mailata, likely as the replacement for Isaac Seumalo at right guard.
Keith Sanchez of The Draft Network: Myles Murphy - Edge Rusher, Clemson
For as productive as Brandon Graham was in 2022, he'll turn 35 this week. Murphy had 18.5 sacks and 36 tackles-for-loss in three seasons for Dabo Swinney at Clemson. He would help to replenish the depth at edge rusher in 2023, and could be the successor to Graham whenever his career concludes.
Josh Edwards of CBS Sports: Nolan Smith - Edge Rusher, Georgia
Again, the Eagles won Super Bowl LII and reached Super Bowl LVII in large part because of their tremendous pass-rushing depth, so it's always logical to project that Roseman will continue to make major investments there. Interestingly, Edwards notes that Smith "has been compared to Haason Reddick throughout this process." Smith would be reunited with the aforementioned Davis if drafted by the Eagles.
Cynthia Freeland of NFL Network: Lukas Van Ness - Edge Rusher, Iowa
Van Ness was Second-Team All-Big 10 in 2022, when he racked up 19 tackles-for-loss and 13 sacks for the Hawkeyes. He would be another excellent candidate to ease into one of the league's best pass rushes.
Charles Davis of NFL Network: Bijan Robinson - Running Back, Texas
Robinson scored 20 total touchdowns in his junior season at Texas, rushing for 1,580 yards and adding 19 catches for 314 yards. The debate here isn't whether Robinson is one of the 10 best players in the 2023 NFL Draft -- if anything, No. 10 is too low for his talent. But running backs have a short shelf life and with a few big years, the Eagles could find themselves either having to give an Ezekiel Elliott-type deal to Robinson, or letting an immensely popular player leave via trade or free agency. Of course, if he joined Jalen Hurts, A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith and Dallas Goedert and helped the Eagles to win a Super Bowl next season, it would all be worth it.
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