Well the Eagles season came to a crushing loss yesterday. Lets just take a quick moment to appreciate this season. They had a rookie head coach who everyone wanted fired after his introductory press conference. Basically a rookie QB who spent the whole season being bashed by the media and unsure if he would be the long term starter. A ceiling of 6 wins. This team overcame so many odds and ended up making the playoffs with such a young team. Oh yeah...they have 3 first round picks.
That is why we are gathered here today. Even though our season is over, it is officially draft season. I am sure most of us are still angry about yesterday, but we have 3 first round picks. Let's get excited about that and realize our future is bright.
15. Tyler Linderbaum C Iowa
The last two seasons we have seen 1 emotional thing. We see Jason Kelce leave the field and we ask ourselves is this the last time we see him in midnight green? Kelce has been mulling retirement for a couple of seasons now. Howie Roseman has made it clear, he builds from the trenches. The offensive line was beat up once again this season. Linderbaum is the best interior offensive lineman in this draft and one of the best prospects at his position of all time. If Roseman wants to continue to build from the trenches, Linderbaum is an easy pick. The Eagles offensive line will not miss a beat with him at center.
16. Drake London WR USC
3 straight years of taking a WR in the first round? The DeVonta Smith pick seems to have worked out great for the Eagles. The 2020 first round pick however is a different story. Reagor has struggled and then he has struggled even more. No matter where he is on the field he struggles. He is wide receiver who can not catch. Some people think he is going to come out in his 3rd season and have a breakout season. Even if he does the Eagles still need WR help. Quez Watkins, JJ Arcega-Whitside, and Greg Ward are not awnsers. This class is loaded at WR. If we want to set Jalen up for as much success as possible, than Drake London is an option. Great route runner who can use his size to make the catch and get yards after the catch. The big thing is he can catch, and that makes him an immediate upgrade from Reagor.
*He also played on the USC Men's Basketball team. If the SIxers need some help (which they clearly do), they can give Howie and Lurie a call and have someone ready to go fairly quickly. Kill two birds with 1 stone.
19. Sauce Gardner CB Cincinnati
Darius Slay was phenomenal this season. The Eagles need to pair him with someone. Insert Sauce into the conversation. I will cry if Gardner ends up as an Eagle. In his last two years of college he never let up a TD and gave up less yards than all the other CB's ahead of him in this draft. In the College Football Semi Finals against Alabama he held WR Jameson Williams to 2 catches and -2 yards. I am no expert, but that is crazy. The Eagles need CB help and Gardner at 19 is a steal.
I am sure there is some hater out there that will get mad that I do not have them drafting a QB. I will continue to say this, there is not a QB in this class that is better than Jalen Hurts. Do not let one bad playoff game dictate the potential and leadership of Jalen Hurts. If we want him to succeed we need to surround him with weapons and protect him. Linderbaum helps solidify the offensive line. If and when Kelce retires the line will not miss a beat. If Jalen Hurts has nothing to throw to, then we can not be upset when he struggles. By taking another WR and hopefully moving on from Jalen Reagor, we can provide Jalen with as much help as we can get. Finally, if we can get lockdown corners, we can get our offense on the field as much as possible.
Draft season is finally upon us. This draft is going to be special for the Eagles. They are extremely ahead of schedule in regards to a "rebuild." To make the situation 10x better they have 3 first round picks. There is room to reach on players and fill multiple holes.
Comments