Ranking Eagles' Top-Five Draft Steals of the Century
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Finding gems in the late rounds of the NFL draft that can be polished is no easy task.
There is no magic formula. Only hard work.
The payoff can pay big dividends, though.
There's little doubt that Tom Brady is the brightest of third-day gems. As anyone who pays attention to the game knows, one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time came in the sixth round.
The Philadelphia Eagles have had their share of success since 2000. To qualify as a gem, players have had to be drafted from the fifth to seventh rounds.
Here are the Eagles’ top five steals of the century:
No. 1 - 2011: Jason Kelce, sixth round, No. 191 - The center, who will turn 36 during the season, has put together a Hall of Fame career and hasn’t missed a start since 2014.
No. 2 - 2005: Trent Cole, fifth round, No. 146 – The defensive end played 10 years with 154 starts with the Eagles and finished with 85.5 sacks, which puts him firmly in second place on the team’s all-time sack list behind only the venerable Reggie White, who had 124.
No. 3 - 2007: Brent Celek, fifth round, No. 162 – The tight end was a model of consistency and finished ninth in team history in receiving yards with 4,988 compiled in 11 NFL seasons, all of which were spent with the Eagles. He went out on top, retiring after the Eagles won Super Bowl LII following the 2017 season.
No. 4 - 2018: Jordan Mailata, seventh round, No 233: The Eagles took a flyer on an Australian rugby star who had never played football in his life. He quickly won the starting left tackle job and has already had his rookie contract extended once.
No. 5 - 2016: Jalen Mills, seventh round, No. 233 – Known as the Green Goblin after he dying the top of his hair green during his stay in Philly, the cornerback manned the outside for five seasons with the Eagles, intercepting five passes in 63 games, 49 of which were starts. He was one of the starting cornerbacks in Super Bowl LII.
Five honorable mentions
2021: Running back Kenny Gainwell, fifth round, No. 150
2014: Defensive tackle Beau Allen, seventh round, No. 224
2010: Safety Kurt Coleman, seventh round, No. 244
2012: Offensive lineman Dennis Kelly, fifth round, No. 153
2013: Safety Jordan Poyer, seventh round, No. 218 (he would be in the top five, but he developed into one of the game’s best at his position in Cleveland and now, for the last six seasons, Buffalo, after Philly cut him).
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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