Embracing Youth

Traditionally the draft is about the future. Free agency and trades are used to plug roster holes that need immediate attention. The draft is about finding guys you’ll want on your team for the next 5 to 10 years. Economics may be causing a bit of a change in that philosophy.

The Chiefs have a lot of money tied up in star players like Patrick Mahomes, Chris Jones and Travis Kelce. They pay good money to key starters like Jawaan Taylor, Joe Thuney and Justin Reid. That means they can’t afford to spend a lot in free agency. Not every roster hole gets a veteran solution.

GM Brett Veach and his scouting department have done a great job of finding starters in the draft.

2021

LB Nick Bolton
C Creed Humphrey
OG Tre Smith

2022

CB Trent McDuffie
DE George Karlaftis
SAF Bryan Cook
LB Leo Chenal
RB Isaih Pacheco

2023

WR Rashee Rice
DB Chamarri Conner

When you can mix young talent like that with proven stars, you win back-to-back Super Bowls.

Now let’s take a look at the Eagles best players from those same three drafts.

2021

WR DeVonta Smith
OG Landon Dickerson
DL Milton Williams

2022

DL Jordan Davis
OL Cam Jurgens

2023

DL Jalen Carter

There are some quality players on that list, but the quantity isn’t anything compared to KC. Part of that is due to KC drafting better, but I also feel like part of it is the Chiefs embracing young players.

With the Eagles having big money going to Jalen Hurts, AJ Brown, Lane Johnson and some other key players, they really need to start getting more out of rookies and young players, especially outside the first round.

One other thing stands out above. The Eagles did well on the line of scrimmage, but struggled everywhere else. That matches up when you think about the back seven on defense and how bad that group was.

Howie Roseman and the scouting staff really need a strong draft class this year. Relying on guys like Nick Morrow, Bradley Roby and Kevin Byard did not work out last year. To make matters worse, the Eagles didn’t give those reps to young guys who could have been learning for the future. When you plug ‘n play one-year veterans, you are just pushing the problem down the road. Teams need long term solutions.

I think the defensive side of the ball will be better with the new coaching staff. That should help player development as well as performance. Coaches who truly understand a scheme can teach it better. That will help players to develop positional skills and also help their confidence. The Eagles have added some talented rookies, but they haven’t developed as hoped.

The Eagles might need to be less patient and more aggressive with young players. Feed them a lot of reps in the spring and summer. Put pressure on them to contribute right away. Let them make mistakes, as long as they’re learning.

There is no magic formula for winning a Super Bowl. But economics becomes a huge factor when you see star players getting mega-bucks. That means you need cheap players to balance them out so you can fit under the salary cap. Rookies are ideal for that because they give you affordable solutions for four or five years. Last year the Eagles found a great addition in Chauncey Gardner-Johnson, but he was a band-aid. He hit free agency and wanted a big payday. The Eagles had to go start looking for the next affordable veteran. That didn’t work so well.

Howie and his staff have a strong core of players already in place. That is part of what makes this draft so crucial. You want to take advantage of talented players like Hurts, Brown, Smith, Johnson, Carter, Reddick, Sweat and others who are key starters. The Eagles don’t have to build the whole house. They just need to renovate the kitchen.

I’m curious to see how Howie approaches the upcoming draft. He normally loves to move up in the first round, to make sure he secures the player he really wants. This looks more like a year to stay put or even move down and add extra assets. This looks like it could be a smart time to draft for quantity as well as quality.

This is a critical year to find some players.

*****

One player going to the Eagles in a lot of mock drafts is CB Quinyon Mitchell from Toledo. I would have no issue with that. Mitchell had a great college career and then played at a high level in Mobile. Stud.

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