Five Final Takeaways For Eagles From NFL Scouting Combine

The NFL Scouting Combine ended Sunday when offensive linemen took the field to work out. There was plenty to like, and the Eagles did a lot of homework on that position as well as the tight end group during their time in Indianapolis.

Here are some thoughts coming out of the annual Combine, especially as it pertains to those two positions:

OFFENSIVE LINEMEN. This is the draft to find one, maybe two. It could be reminiscent of the 2013 draft, which produced Lane Johnson and several standouts and is considered one of the top five offensive line drafts in NFL history. Everyone should know the first-round names by now, and Daniel Jeremiah has six going in the first round in his 2.0 mock draft, including Clemson’s Blake Miller to the Eagles with the No. 23 pick.

Monroe Freeling, though, reminds me of Lane Johnson physically – long and lean – and experience, with Johnson making 23 starts at tackle (11 at right tackle) while at Oklahoma and Freeling just 16 starts at Georgia. The Eagles also reportedly did a lot of homework on Alabama product Kadyn Proctor.

If you’re looking for potential Day 2 picks, some to watch include Georgia Tech’s Keylan Rutledge, Texas A&M’s Chase Bisontis and Dametrious Crownover, and Oregon’s Emmanuel Pregnon.

LOVE AFFAIR PART 1. Kenyon Sadiq was supposed to blow up the Combine with his otherworldly athletic traits. And the Oregon tight end did just that. Now, the love for him in Philly, among several other NFL cities, is so strong you can smell it. One mock draft had the Eagles trading up to 14 to take him.

Slow down. It’s easy to fall in love with a workout warrior, but remember if Sadiq gets picked in the first round he would be just the second tight end to be drafted in the first round despite having less than 1,000 receiving yards in his college career, joining Benjamin Watson, who had a solid if unspectacular 16-year career, but didn’t make the Pro Bowl once.

The Eagles value college production, so temper your love for Sadiq. Even Mike Mamula, who had a fabulous testing day at the Combine in 1995 had 13 sacks as a senior at Boston College, and, while Eagles fans might think he was a bust, he was far from that. The seventh overall pick had 31.5 sacks during his five years in Philly before a foot injury forced him to retire.

LOVE AFFAIR PART 2. Just as fans have fallen in love with Sadiq, they have also done so with North Dakota State receiver Bryce Lance, the brother of QB bust Trey Lance. No question, Lance lit it up at the Combine, and could be a Day 3 target. There’s no argument over his size (6-3, 204), speed (4.34 in the Combine 40), or production (2,157 receiving yards and 25 TDs in the last two seasons), but there needs to be more work on technique refinement, and that’s OK.

Tight End Overshadowed By Kenyon Sadiq

WHAT ABOUT ME? Eli Stowers was overshadowed a bit by Sadiq, but no less a workout warrior. Vanderbilt’s Stowers went further than Sadiq in the broad jump, checking in at 11-3. He clocked a 4.51 in the 40, though, and weighed 239 pounds, which is a little on the light side. The question for him, as well as just about every tight end that enters the league these days, is whether he can block.

“My underrated trait, I would say, is blocking,” said Stowers. “I think that people don't give me enough credit for the strides I've already taken, um, in my blocking game. Um, I think, like, I said, there's still - I'm not saying I'm perfect - there's a whole lot more I can continue to grow. Um, but I think I'm a, you know, I'm a good blocker at this point in my trip.”

WHAT HAPPENED? Just as there are workout warriors, there are also players whose stock may have slipped a bit after their workouts. Two such players are Ohio State tight end Max Klare and Toledo safety Emmanuel McNeill-Warren.

Klare’s production dipped at Ohio State last year, where he transferred from Purdue, and he chose not to run in Indy, though he did drills and looked average.

McNeill-Warren, who is friends with Eagles first-round pick Quinyon Mitchell, worked out fine, with testing that can best be described as average. It paled compared to some other safeties.

Maybe both will rebound during their pro days. Or perhaps their performances will cause a drop to where maybe the Eagles, if they see some things they like in one or both, can pounce on the second day of the draft.

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