Rd. 1 pick no. 12: WR Jaylen Waddle Alabama or TE Kyle Pitts Florida Gators:
The Eagles made a smart trade with the Miami Dolphins for a bevy of extra draft picks in the next two NFL Drafts and should still be able to still land their guy at no. 12 while adding an extra 4th round pick for this year and an extra first-round pick for next year. Pitts or Waddle or LB Micah Parsons will be there and I will be shocked if they do not draft one of said three players at this spot.
I also won’t be shocked if the player a team wants at say 9 or 10 is not there and they become desperate to trade back allowing the Eagles to move up for peanuts if they fear a particular player (WR Jaylen Waddle) not being there at no. 12 overall. I think this team will draft TE Kyle Pitts at this spot and for the many fans that want a WR in round, one fear not for Kyle Pitts is possibly the best WR in this class as well as TE.
We haven’t seen a player enter the draft like him in over a decade when TE Robert Gronkowski was selected by the Patriots and what will be very scary for opposing defenses is the fact that he could be even better than Gronk and WR Michael Thomas combined which bodes well for the Eagles and not quite so much for any team they play. I’ll be happy with any of the aforementioned players at this spot but I have a gut feeling that Kyle Pitts is their guy all the way in round one or they wouldn’t have traded back to attain more draft capital.
Rd. 2 pick no. 37: CB Asante Samuel Jr. Florida State University:
Asante Samuel Jr. is a clone of his father the former great All-Pro NFL CB and Philadelphia legend Asante Samuel Sr. He’s a ballhawk just like his father was in his prime yet a more willing and hard-hitting tackler. He’s a player that will create turnovers for a team that didn’t have nearly enough takeaways last season and will match up nicely with CB Darius Slay on the outside. If he is already drafted before the Eagles pick CB Eric Stokes is a great second option and a player who is also a ballhawk. The Eagles need a ballhawk at the outside corner spot more than they need a quote on quote shut down corner. I think Samuel will be here and either DB will instantly upgrade the defensive backfield for the birds.
Rd. 3: Jabrill Cox LB LSU:
The second best LB in this year’s draft class after Micah Parson out of Penn State Cox is an absolute hammer an inside LB who is also an excellent pass rusher who can drop back to cover skill position players as well. Now that Super Bowl-winning DC Jim Swartz is no longer with the Eagles and Johnathon Gannon is the new DC look for the Philadelphia Eagles to value the linebacker position again. They have one starting LB on the roster in Alex Singleton so look for them to add a veteran before the draft and to sprint up to the podium to nab Jabrill Cox at this spot.
Rd. 3 pick no. 84 (from Indy) RB Larry Roundtree Missouri:
Roundtree could potentially wind up being the best RB in this draft and will instantly form an excellent one-two punch in the backfield with star RB1 Miles Sanders while RB3 Boston Scott still gets his touches as a pass-catching specialist and return man. If there is an injury Roundtree has the ability to be a star RB1 as well. in today’s NFL having two star backs on your roster is obviously a good thing and while we all love RB Boston Scott he’s a 3-5 touches a game type of RB who can play some slot WR and not a true RB2 like Roundtree will be immediately for the birds. Just last season he ran for 972 yards and 14 TDs for a team that liked to really throw the football.
You turn on the game tape and you see a highlight machine in the form of a bigger Brian Westbrook or Tarik Cohen…back when Cohen was still very good before his injuries. He could be the steal of the draft and if need be brings kick return ability as well if Scott goes down with an injury. I disagree with the sentiment that it is a bad thing to have two workhorse backs with excellent speed on one team. Look at what the San Francisco 49ers and Green Bay Packers have done recently with a similar model. If the Eagles decide to simply add a one pony hammer type back later on in the draft as many fans would prefer then WR Tylan Wallace from Oklahoma State is also a very likely possibility at this spot. QB Jalen Hurts may be a very talented young player but in order to develop properly he needs weapons and Larry Roundtree is most certainly a dangerous weapon.
Rd. 4 pick no. 123 (from Miami) OL Landon Dickerson:
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The Eagles add a very good OL who can step in and start in a heartbeat if more (god please not again this upcoming season) injuries happen at any spot on the right side of the offensive line. At worst he’s a valuable backup OL and at best as I believe him to be a future starter at RG when RG Brandon Brooks retires in two years or so. The Eagles desperately need depth at OL and they nab an underrated prospect here. It’s entirely possible that the Eagles go OL first and are still able to pick up RB Larry Roundtree at this spot. The picks could even be identically flipped. Time will tell.
Rd. 5 pick no. 150 DE Tarron Jackson Coastal Carolina:
Tarron Jackson may be one of the biggest steals of the draft. No, he’s not Damion Harrison but he has DE Josh Sweat 2.0 written all over him. At 6ft3 270 pounds he had 10 sacks this past season for Coastal Carolina and was a team captain. He improved every single year in college which should translate to the NFL. He will likely begin his career as a rotational pass rusher however he could be a big-name starter or at worst DE3 in just his second year in the NFL. Look for Jackson to contribute and make some big plays as a rookie.
Rd. 6 no. 189:
The Eagles trade this selection for a TE3 let’s say one of the Baltimore ravens one hundred players at that position. An upgrade over TE Joshua Perkins or any backup TE this late in the draft.
Rd. 6 no. 224 overall (comp draft selection):
The Eagles trade this selection to the Jets for a rotational veteran pass rusher. Here’s an unlikely dream scenario: It’s DE Vinny Curry! It will likely be a player that the Jets do not covet on a cheap rookie contract. Think RB Jay Ajayi when the Dolphins undervalued him and it worked out well for the birds.
Rd. 6 no. 225 overall: DB James Wiggins Cincinatti:
If not for a torn ACL Wiggins would be higher on the Eagles draft board however he is a player that the team has scouted. He does have star potential at both SS and CB, but he may not play a down as a rookie. He is worth a flier at this stage of the draft due to his athletic potential alone. He is potentially a low-risk high-reward player. I have a good feeling about Wiggins being a good future starter in the NFL and even contributing as a special teams tackling ace with return ability if he’s healthy enough during his rookie season and I believe he will be about halfway through the season which is a great for a selection at this stage of the NFL draft. My gut feeling: He will be a star for this team his second season in the NFL.
Rd. 7: no. 234 overall WR Antwan Davis Louisville:
The Eagles get themselves a steal in WR Antwan Davis who can start as a rookie in the slot over Greg Ward who we love but know is more of a 5th WR than a starter. Davis is a huge upgrade with a good combination of size and speed as well as college production who is flying under the radar due to playing for a school that isn’t Alabama and being in a draft that is rich with skill position talent. Davis reminds me of a faster Anquan Bolden and that is saying something. You can say what you want about GM Howie Roseman’s last few attempts at adding elite talent in round one of the draft.
Nobody can argue that he’s had some success with 7th round selections in the last few years because as odd as it is he has landed some great players in the drafts last round. Both Jordan Mailata at LT and DB Jalen Mills has certainly proven as much. Mills had some ups and downs against elite WRs who excelled with the using of double moves but was one of the NFL’s best red-zone corners throughout his career and played some spectacular football in his last season with the Eagle’s at FS and even had some success rushing the passer as evidence by his 2.5 sacks last season. The Eagles giant Aussie LT has proven to be a stud as he protected the blind side extremely well this past season as well. I believe that WR Antwan Davis will be the next Mailata for this team albeit at WR.
Rd. 7: via a trade for TE Zach Ertz:
The Eagles bite the bullet and trade TE Zach Ertz for a 2021 first-round pick and a 2022 5th round pick. With the pick, they take the best FB in the draft in Ben Mason and they’ll love his nickname as he goes by mad dog Mason. He is not your typical FB. He can block but he also adds value as a pass-catcher and a runner if he’s given the opportunity.
The Eagles have flirted with adding a FB to the roster for years and now they finally do and they get a guy who can start day one in the 7th round of the draft. Yo Philly fans who want that absolute hammer on 4th and goal! You got him! At 6ft2 255 pounds Mason is a surprisingly athletic shifty back as well. Another thing that Eagles fans will appreciate is Mason’s blue-collar attitude. He can play a little defense as well in the red zone. The New Orleans Saints have arguably the best FB in the NFL at the moment. That will change the minute that Ben Mason is selected.
Rd. 7 no. 240 overall (from San Fran):
I was going to add one last trade at this spot at it is entirely possible the Eagles use this pick to trade for WR who may not play a whole lot but brings a lot of veteran leadership to the team’s young WR core. It’s obviously very very likely that the team takes a flier on another CB, or WR depending on how they feel about WRs John Hightower and Quez Watkins.
I’m actually pretty high on Watkins as a Greg Lewis type of WR so I’m going to go defense with the Eagle’s last pick (barring another trade) in the 2021 NFL Draft. With this selection, the Eagles draft DE Carlos Basham Jr. Wake Forest. Some players are put simply going to slide in the NFL Draft as always and the Eagles sprint to the podium to draft a prospect that easily could have been a late-day one pick but has some character concerns. The Eagles have had a lot of success with such players. Think Michael Vick for instance.
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