The Other Jalen

The draft is about more than the first round. Go back to 2011. 6th round pick Jason Kelce turned out slightly better than 1st rounder Danny Watkins. Go back to 2020. 2nd rounder Jalen Hurts turned out slightly better than 1st rounder Jalen Reagor. You never know where you’ll find great players.

Still, the 1st round is critical.

Brandon Graham
Fletcher Cox
Lane Johnson
DeVonta Smith

Those guys all helped the Eagles reach the Super Bowl last year. All but Smith were on the team that won it all in 2017. 1st round picks are critical.

I mention this because I keep trying to figure out what the Eagles will do with pick 10. There is no single player who is the perfect target. Some years there is that player you covet. Other times there are a couple of guys. There are plenty of guys I have interest in this year, but I keep getting stuck on this being pick 10.

With the Hurts/Sirianni combo, the Eagles shouldn’t be picking this high for a while. The Eagles have to be looking for someone special. If that is the case, there is only one player who truly fits the bill.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbPwMAzyxuI&t=290s

Back in the middle of the 2022 college season, Carter was my #1 player. I was praying the Saints would be awful and get the Eagles the top pick so they would have a chance to get the best player.

The offseason has changed things. Carter is still an elite talent, but there are character concerns. He will not go #1. He might fall all the way down to 10. The Eagles have a legit shot to get him.

Here are some comments from Adam Schefter.

Schefter joined 97.5 The Fanatic’s The John Kincade Show this week to talk all things Eagles and NFL Draft, and the most intriguing stuff he mentioned during his hit pertained to the Eagles and Carter. Here’s what Schefter is seeing, and thinking, about the possibility: “When you talk to people around that Georgia program, they say that one guy – maybe *the* one guy – that kept Jalen Carter really in line was Jordan Davis. When he was around Jordan Davis, he was on some of his best behavior. Philly would have that advantage, bringing [Carter] to Philly and having Jordan Davis as a guy that could help out there. […] He’s the guy in this year’s draft that, outside of the quarterbacks, is really fascinated and intrigued to see: what happens to this all-world talent and who is the one that turns in the pick on him? I’ll say this: I think there’s a decent chance that the Eagles are the team that has that decision to make here.”

As to the comment about Davis being able to control Carter…I’m not so sure on that. Schefter isn’t exactly locked in to college programs. That’s most likely a line being fed to him by Carter’s agent or some team.

The most interesting part is the last line.

“I think there’s a decent chance that the Eagles are the team that has that decision to make here.”

Are there really nine players likely to go before the Eagles pick?

3 QBs
DE Will Anderson
DL Tyree Wilson
CB Devon Witherspoon
CB Christian Gonzalez

That is seven guys. There could be a fourth QB (hopefully). Maybe OL Peter Skoronski. There are some wild cards like Paris Johnson, Lukas Van Ness or Nolan Smith. And Bijan Robinson is the ultimate mystery man. Top 5 talent, but he’s a RB and that hurts his value.

We can’t say Carter is likely, but it is possible for him to fall to 10th.

As long as Big Dom’s research on Carter doesn’t come back too bad, he is the guy I would target. Carter has a chance to be special and DTs like that are incredibly valuable in today’s game. He can 2-gap. He can shoot into the backfield and make plays vs the run. He can rush the passer and affect the QB.

I would not trade up for Carter. If he falls to you, great. But I would not sink extra resources into a player I had questions about.

When we talk about his character, don’t think of him as a criminal or something like that. We’re talking mostly about maturity. Drag racing was dumb. Leaving the scene was dumb. Lying to the cops was dumb. Being overweight at his Pro Day was unprofessional. This stuff can be fixed. These issues can go away.

Or not.

Being around veteran DL like Cox and Graham would be good for him. Being around team leaders like Kelce, Hurts and Johnson would be good for him. When you have strong leaders like this, they can help one or two guys who have issues. You get into trouble when that ratio is closer to 50-50. The leaders can’t help everyone. This is professional football. You need most player to handle their business the right way.

There is risk with Carter. There is also a tremendous reward if the pick works out. He could be a Fletcher Cox type of player. He and Jordan Davis would give the Eagles a dynamic duo on the DL for the next several years.

While Carter has issues, he might not make it to 10. He could go anywhere in the 5 to 9 range. All of those teams could use an impact DL.

So what happens if Carter is gone? The more I think about it the more I keep coming back to Nolan Smith.

Nolan Smith on the field with Haason Reddick for at least two seasons of football is something I would be banging the table for in the Eagles’ draft meetings. If you can’t get Jalen Carter, Smith provides the most intriguing schematic possibilities of anyone else, in my opinion.

— Honest NFL (@TheHonestNFL) April 13, 2023

That’s kind of where my head is at right now.

I see special potential in both Carter and Smith. Pick 10 feels a bit early for Smith, but if you trade down, you risk losing Smith. He is an explosive athlete, good leader and talented pass rusher.

Lukas Van Ness is the other guy I keep trying to figure out. I love his versatility and athleticism. Pick 10 just feels early for a guy who never started in college. There is no questioning his talent. He’s a bigger, more athletic version of Josh Sweat. That’s intriguing as heck.

If Carter is gone, trading back would make a lot of sense. There are some good mid-round targets I’d love to be able to add. Howie needs to add picks in the Rounds 3-5 area to be able to get some of those guys.

Only a couple of weeks left, but still a lot of unknowns. Should be a fun three days.

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Draft Visits Update

The Eagles are continuing to bring in draft prospects for visits. That doesn’t mean they love all these guys, but it does mean they’re interested and trying to figure out something about the players. In some cases…is this guy someone we want? There might be character or injury concerns. In other cases the question is how badly they want the player. The Eagles are fine-tuning their draft board.

Let’s take a look at all the Top 30 visits.

QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson – UCLA

RB Bijan Robinson – Texas

OT Peter Skoronski – Northwestern
OT Dawand Jones – Ohio State
OT Paris Johnson – Ohio State
OT Darnell Wright – Tennessee

DT Jalen Carter – Georgia
DT Bryan Bresee – Clemson
DT Mazi Smith – Michigan
DT Gervon Dexter – Florida
DT Jaquelin Roy – LSU
DT Brodric Martin – Western Kentucky

DL Lukas Van Ness – Iowa

Edge Nolan Smith – Georgia
Edge B.J. Ojulari – LSU

SAF Jason Taylor II – Oklahoma State

CB Kelee Ringo – Georgia
CB Julius Brents – Kansas State
CB Joey Porter Jr – Penn State
CB Emmanuel Forbes – Mississippi State

Special Interest

WR A.T. Perry – Wake Forest
OT Jake Witt – Northern Michigan
OG Anthony Bradford – LSU
C John Michael Schmitz – Minnesota
TE Zach Kuntz – Old Dominion
WR Braxton Westfield – Carson-Newman

Edge Jose Ramirez – Eastern Michigan
Edge David Perales – Fresno State
DL Viliami Fehoko – San Jose State
DT Desjuan Johnson – Toledo
LB Amari Burney – Florida
CB Anthony Kendall – Baldwin Wallace
CB Starling Thomas – UAB

Local Pro Day

RB Aidan Borguet – Harvard

CB Christian Braswell – Rutgers

DB Jaquan Amoms – Ball State

WR Sean Ryan – Rutgers

LB Johnny Buchanan – Delaware

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The new guys we found out about are Dorian Thompson-Robinson and Jason Taylor II.

DTR makes a ton of sense for the Eagles. He is a gifted athlete who made a ton of plays at UCLA. He stands out as a runner, but also has potential as a passer. DTR needs work in that area, but he’s the kind of Day 3 project you don’t mind taking a chance on.

DTR measured in at 6-2, 203 so he’s big enough. He ran 4.56 at the Combine and that speed shows up on tape. I was surprised at how good his arm is. DTR can really sling it. The downside with him is protecting the ball and improving his passing game. He has the tools to potentially be a starting QB, but needs work. If the Eagles want a really athletic backup behind Hurts, DTR would be a fun choice.

https://twitter.com/SportsCenter/status/1576073340338446337

I've seen basically zero talk about Dorian Thompson-Robinson this draft season, so I just wanted remind people he's out there.

QBs with DTR's arm and athleticism always get drafted. pic.twitter.com/DJso6XTdWY

— Ryan McCrystal (@Ryan_McCrystal) April 7, 2023

I have him rated as a 5th rounder. It is possible he goes earlier, but it wouldn’t be much. While he has good tools to work with, he is still a project at this point.

Jalen Hurts is the long term answer at QB. Marcus Mariota is the backup for this season. Ian Book is a mystery. The Eagles like him, but they haven’t seen him in game action yet. He joined the team after last preseason.

DTR is the kind of highly athletic QB the coaches may be looking for to run this offense.

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Taylor is a talented safety who would be a good fit for Sean Desai’s scheme. He started for 2 years and proved to be a good playmaker. He had 10 TFLs and 8 INTs in that time. Taylor is at his best in Cover 2. He tested well at the Combine (4.50 in the 40 and 43-inch vertical), but you don’t always see that athleticism on tape. He will get beat deep on occasion.

Taylor is a solid tackler and hitter. He showed the ability to play in the box or back deep. He also is a good STs player.

https://twitter.com/CodyNagel247/status/1570136753381457921

Both of Jason Taylor II INTs vs Texas pic.twitter.com/yPlaXHrSZw

— Billy M (@BillyM_91) March 16, 2023

I’m guessing the Eagles want a playmaker at safety. Taylor showed good playmaking ability at OSU. He’s got good hands. He shows the ability to jump routes and get to the ball.

I see Taylor as a 4th round pick. Obviously the safety position is far from set in stone. The Eagles have a collection of guys, but no foundational pieces. Taylor would give them one more contestant for Who Wants To Start at Safety.

*****

A few people have asked about this.

A “fed up” Devin White, who’s entering his fifth year, has requested a trade from the Bucs https://t.co/kYJVYLwXCa

— JennaLaineESPN (@JennaLaineESPN) April 11, 2023

First, the Bucs have said they won’t trade him. I’m sure that is posturing as much as anything, but it is worth keeping in mind.

More importantly, I just can’t see the Eagles trading for a MLB who is due almost $12M this season. Even if the Eagles did have interest, White isn’t an ideal fit. He is at his best blitzing (20.5 sacks, 55 QB hits in 4 years). The Eagles would want a run stuffer with a bit of coverage ability. White has 1 INT and 15 PDs in 62 starts. TJ Edwards had 2 INTs and 13 PDs in 47 starts.

Interesting to consider, but won’t be happening.

*****

This was funny.

https://twitter.com/PointsBetUSA/status/1645216742837305345

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