Iggles Blitz

by Tommy Lawlor

2026 Draft – Day 3 Review

Posted April 25th, 2026 | No Comments »

The Eagles entered the day with 3 picks, and none in the fourth round. Howie Roseman had to wait a couple of hours to get going, but ended up having an active day. A trade with the Rams added a couple of extra picks.

Round 1: No. 23 – WR Makai Lemon – 5-11, 192 – USC
Round 2: No. 54 – TE Eli Stowers – 6-4, 239 – Vanderbilt
Round 3: No. 68 – OT Markell Bell – 6-9, 346 – Miami
Round 3: No. 98 – traded for ED Jonathan Greenard
Round 5: No. 178 – QB Cole Payton – 6-3, 232 – NDSU
Round 6: No. 207 – OG Micah Morris – 6-5, 334 – Georgia
Round 7: No. 244 – S Cole Wisniewski – 6-3, 219 – Texas Tech
Round 7: No. 251 – DT Uar Bernard – 6-4, 306 – IPP
Round 7: No. 252 – ED Keyshawn James-Newby – 6-2, 238 – New Mexico

We had to wait a long time for the first pick. Some people were disappointed that it was QB Cole Payton. I was totally fine with the pick. Payton is naturally gifted and QB is the most important position in football. The Eagles did a lot of work on Payton and really wanted him.

The big concern for some is that the team now has 4 QBs on the roster. Don’t worry about that too much. Howie wouldn’t have made the pick if he didn’t have a plan. Jalen Hurts is a lock, obviously. Tanner McKee is a lock, unless the Eagles are able to trade him. Andy Dalton and Payton need to earn roster spots. They could always cut Dalton and try to get him on the practice squad. There apparently wasn’t much of a trade market for McKee this weekend. That could change in the summer. Howie said in his press conference that they would be willing to keep 4 QBs on the roster. This is probably a mixture of truth and also Howie letting teams know he won’t be giving McKee away. They will have to pay the price if they want him.

Now let’s talk about Payton the player. Here are my raw notes.

Cole Payton – 6-3, 232 – One-year starter with outstanding mobility. Ran for 777 yards and 13 TDs in 2025. Left-handed passer. Good accuracy on downfield throws. Throws well on the move. Good arm. Played in a run heavy offense. Only threw 225 passes as a senior, only 283 for his career. Good athlete. Payton is a project because he hasn’t been in an offense focused on the passing game and he lacks ideal experience. Has the size, athleticism and tools to develop into an NFL QB.

He needs work to be sure, but has the raw talent.

I think Payton has the potential to be a starting QB down the road. For now he provides the Eagles a cheap backup QB when McKee leaves.

***

Next up, the Eagles added a big man to the middle of the OL, taking Micah Morris from Georgia.

Micah Morris – 6-5, 334 – Georgia – 18 career starts. Big, thick build. Still quick off the ball. Powerful player with strong hands. Needs to work on using them better. Too grabby at times. Moves well for a guy his size. Anchors well. Good on short pulls. Plays with a wide base in pass pro. Has some athleticism, but is a bit stiff. Good Combine numbers. Too uright at times. Can get off balance. Good showing at the Shrine Game. Has experience at LG and RG.

Morris is big, but still athletic.

Morris does need some work. He can be too upright at times. You can get away with that in college, but no so much in the NFL. He needs to be better with his hands. He can be too grabby. These are things coaches can fix. They can’t teach big and athletic. You have that or you don’t. I had A 5th round grade on Morris so he feels like good value at this point.

***

The Eagles finally added a safety with the next pick.

Cole Wisniewski – 6-3, 219 – Texas Tech – 6-year player, mostly at NDSU. Had 32 career starts. Had strong senior season. 73 tackles, 6 TFLs, 5 PDs, 2 FF. Began his career at LB before moving to S. Had 8 INTs while at NDSU. Wrap up tackler with good power. Big hitter. Looks good in man coverage. Played some slot in the Shrine Game and looked good there. Physical presence, whether in the box or the deep middle. Takes good angles to the ball. Can match up with TEs in man coverage. Doesn’t have ideal speed. Already age 24.

I wondered if he would interest them with his skill set. The Eagles seem to like guys with good man cover skills and some experience as a nickel. Wisniewski isn’t that guy. But then he went to the Shrine Game and showed some versatility. That got my attention.

Wisniewski will be a good STer right away. He can develop into a starting safety over time if he proves he can handle the pro passing game. His run defense is NFL ready right now. He is physical.

***

Howie admitted the Eagles made sure to get a 7th round pick because he wanted to draft DT Uar Bernard. Who? Who indeed.

Calling Bernard an athletic freak feels like an understatement. He is basically the same speed as Grant Calcaterra, but is 70 pounds heavier. That’s insane. He has no football experience so this is a long shot. Jordan Mailata panned out, but was good at a similar sport and just had to adjust to football. Bernard is a blank slate. Clint Hurtt worked him out and has met with him multiple times so the Eagles did their homework. This is a gamble they feel is worth it because of Bernard’s potential. He will be interesting to follow this summer. Becaus he’s an international player the Eagles get a roster exemption for him so this is a smart gamble.

***

With the final pick the Eagles took someone I had not studied, ED Keyshawn James-Newby – 6-2, 238 – New Mexico. Since the draft ended and I had a chance to watch him, I can see what they like.

KJN is impressive. He can win with speed. He will mix in power rushes. He can set the edge in the run game. He dropped back into coverage at times. That is the skill set that Fangio loves in his edge rushers. Watch that tape and you see him making plays against Michigan and UCLA. He wasn’t just eating up weak competition.

We don’t know how his game will translate to the NFL, but this is a good late round pick. You can never have enough pass rushers.

***

Howie didn’t have ideal resources on Day 3, but I liked what he did. He added a talented QB, addressed the LOS and got us a safety. That’s good work. The Eagles targeted some players and went and got them. That’s what you want to do. Now we’ll find out if they targeted the right players.

***

The Eagles have signed some UDFAs. I will write about them tomorrow. Sometimes players come and go in the first 24 hours so there’s no reason to do too much work until we feel confident about who is really here.

_

2026 Draft – Day 3 Preview

Posted April 25th, 2026 | No Comments »

Patience is a virtue, they say. Well, we will have to be virtuous today because the Eagles don’t have a fourth round pick. Their first selection will be number 178. The final pick last night was number 100 so we have a while to wait.

If you’re bored, go read my morning review of Day 2.

On to Day 3.

PICKS

Round 1: No. 23 – WR Makai Lemon – 5-11, 192 – USC
Round 2: No. 54 – TE Eli Stowers – 6-4, 239 – Vanderbilt
Round 3: No. 68 – OT Markell Bell – 6-9, 346 – Miami
Round 3: No. 98 – traded for ED Jonathan Greenard
Round 5: No. 178
Round 6: No. 197
Round 7: No. 244

POSITIONS

I’m going to focus on the key positions here. The Eagles will trust their draft board so they could take a RB or WR or ED. Here are the positions I think they will focus on. There are better options than you might think for a team with three late picks.

SAF – Drew Mukuba is set as one starter. I have Marcus Epps as the other starter, but he could be beaten out by a rookie. Epps is a good tackler and run defender. He’s not as much of a playmaker as the Eagles prefer. This is a spot where the Eagles could take someone as early as the second round. This is a good safety class so the Eagles don’t need to force things. If they can add an extra pick or two, I’d love to see them double-dip at safety.

OG – Another spot where there is a need for the future, possibly the present. Dickerson hopes to be healthy this season. If he is, he’s one of the best OGs in the league. He struggled mightily last season and the Eagles can’t go through that again. Steen was solid in 2025, but a very talented rookie could push him.

CB – The starters are set for 2026. There is a need for a young player to play opposite of Mitchell for the long term. That guy could be picked this year, but doesn’t have to be. The Eagles would probably like to address this position on Day 3.

DT – The Eagles have a good DL with Jalen Carter, Jordan Davis, Moro Ojomo and Byron Young. Ty Robinson didn’t show much as a rookie, but the team was very high on him so let’s give him a chance to develop. There is always room for another talented big man. The question is what they are looking for. I think they would prefer an athletic DT who can rush the passer. Jonny Page who does excellent work for BGN thinks they need more of a run stuffer. It will be interesting to see what they do. If Brando Graham comes back, he can rush up the middle so that may push them to go for more of a run stuffer.

LB – Vic Fangio loves LBs. The departure of Nakobe Dean means there is room to add one. I don’t see this as an early target, but never say never. Zack Baun will turn 30 this year so the team could take a LB earlier than expected. They have been checking out athletic LB prospects.

QB – There isn’t a need for a QB. That said, McKee is in the final year of his deal and the team might want to add someone to get ready for 2027. If they do that, it would mean carrying four QBs on the roster. The Eagles are one of the few teams who might be willing to do that. There is also the possibility of trading McKee. That could happen during the draft. The Eagles have looked at prospects who could go in the middle rounds as well as UDFAs. They will add a QB, either to the roster or the practice squad.

***

I would love to come away with one or two of these guys.

S Genesis Smith
S Kamari Ramsey
OG Brian Parker
OG Beau Stephens
DT Kaleb Proctor
DT Jordan van den Berg
LB Jimmy Rolder
LB Karson Sharar

***

DRAFT BOARD 

The Eagles have to wait so long to pick that there isn’t much use in a normal draft board for us. I will list players of interest at the positions above. Read the rest of this entry »