EAGLEMANIACAL.com

WINNING the Super Bowl with what people have repeated called “the best roster in the NFL” and/or “the deepest roster in the NFL”, says that when the final game of the season was over, your Philadelphia Eagles, had few if any, holes to fill.

Then came free agency, with opposing teams driving truckloads of money up to some of our players. Like back-up DT Milton Williams, netting a four year 104M$ deal from the Patriots. Then after free agency, trades like the one that sent FS C.J. Gardner-Johnson to the Texans. Then releases, like CB Darius Slay being allowed to take I-76 over to Pittsburgh.

Personnel losses (especially on Defense), left us with questions about depth. We also face possible starting holes, if our announced heir-apparent players, aren’t able to step up. Players like DT Moro Ojomo, FS Sydney Brown, and CB Kelee Ringo.

This is where the annual NFL Draft comes in. In a few days, General Manager Howie Roseman gets to load up on young, cheap talent, to help patch some of the holes. Our ammunition? We enter this year’s draft with eight picks in the first five rounds.

Word is that our biggest need is at Safety. WRONG! That’s not a factual statement. At DE we currently have Bryce Huff (whom we want to trade) and K.J. Henry, on his fourth team in four years. So we have no starting DE’s. This is a massive hole. Luckily this draft is loaded with defensive line talent, so we’d be idiots not to load up on two or three of them.

Time to look at this draft!

Round 1 #32: (Trade up to 15) RDE Shemar Stewart (6’5, 267) – Everyone is talking about us replacing back-up DT Milton Williams. How about we replace starting DE Josh Sweat first? Make sense? I thought so too. Stewart gives us a more sudden, more violent version of Sweat. If he can add his hands to his explosiveness, he’ll require frequent double teaming.

ALTERNATE CHOICE: (Trade up to 15) DT Walter Nolen (6’4, 296) If Stewart is gone, and Nolen is still there, he’s too good to pass up. Better yet, he’s too good to have to face twice a year. He has the tweener body type to move to LDE, with DT Jalen Carter eating double teams beside him.

Round 2 #64: (Trade up to 40, possibly for TE Dallas Goedert and a pick) DE Nic Scourton (6’3, 257) – What I like most about Scourton, is his size. He looks bigger than he’s listed, and he’s played as heavy as 285. I have long thought that we could use bigger DE. By “bigger” I mean 270-plus. Brandon Graham was effective at 6’2 265, but he was never overpowering in the sense of a Reggie White (6’5/305) or a Clyde Simmons (6’6/292). Scourton could give us that size.

Thing is, he’s projected as a late 1^st early 2^nd round pick, so he won’t be there at 64. We’ll have to move up to get him as well, but if we could pull it off, our defensive line would be the stuff of nightmares. ALTERNATE CHOICE: (Don’t trade up) LDE Sai’vion Jones – (6’5 280) He has a 3rd round grade on him, so picking him 64^th is only slightly over-drafting him. However, if he gets lined up at LDE next to Jalen Carter, by November you won’t care about the pick, because you’ll love the fit.

Round 3 #96: Likely gone in a trade up along with some 2026 Draft capital

Round 4 #134: RB Cam Skattebo (5’9, 219) – Seems weird to you doesn’t it? True or False. RB Saquon Barkley comes with an injury history, and is coming off a 378 touch season? His current back-up, A.J. Dillon, is hopefully recovered from a neck injury. (A stinger. Remember FB Kevin Turner?) Behind Dillon is Will Shipley, who had a nice couple of runs in the playoffs, but looked sluggish all last regular season. So we need some insurance.

Skattebo is a no nonsense sparkplug. He runs hard, bounces off contact, and can also catch the ball. While he lacks the speed to score from anywhere, he has more than enough speed and power, to break of yardage in large chunks.

Round 5 #161: OT Caleb Etienne (6’6, 329) – He has a 6^th – 7^th round grade on him, but I don’t trust that. He has every tool in the box, he just needs some refinement. I’d love to see Offensive Line Coach Jeff Stoutland get a couple years to develop him, before RT Lane Johnson retires.

Round 5 #164: TE Jackson Hawes (6’4, 253) – He’s an actual TE. He’s not a heavy WR. He’s not a piece that coaches “will be excited to move around”. He’s a TE. He plays at the end of the O-Line. He blocks his ass off. He catches dump-offs, and short passes. Period. He’s not out there to threaten anyone deep. In fact, with 51 catches in 4 years, he rarely saw the ball.

Round 5 #165: CB Marcus Harris (5’11, 189) – More of a zone corner than man, but he’s aggressive towards the ball, and shoots his gun versus the run.

Round 5 #168: Likely gone in a trade up along with some 2026 Draft capital

Notice how I did not select a Safety? That was quite on purpose. If Sydney Brown is getting a shot at the job, then give him the shot. Drafting a rookie early, to stare over Brown’s shoulder, sends a message of no confidence. If there are going to be questions over the starting spot, then just sign a veteran as insurance. Preferably one with knowledge of our defensive system. HINT!