The Philadelphia Eagles

A year that started off very well for the Eagles sizzled out and showed that the offense was not the same and the defense had too many holes at the second and third level. GM Howie Roseman absolutely was up to the challenge with the free-agent grabs but let’s see how he did with their first four picks and see what the future now holds for the Birds.

Pick 22 Quinyon Mitchell (CB) was an obvious one in my eyes and brings the very much needed youth to a DB room that is too old now to go the distance of a long season and be effective. With 15 pass break-ups last year Mitchell proved able to track the ball very well and time it very well while getting to the receiver shands as well. Mitchell isn’t as “sticky” as someone like Terrion Arnold but his zone-coverage is where he will be at his best.

At pick 40 the Eagles grabbed Cooper Dejean (DB) and showed they want to fix that secondary and fix it fast! Cooper gave opposing QBs hell last year allowing a 37.8 passer rating when targeting him. DeJean did have an injury that kept him out of the combine but that should not have keeped GM’s away for 39 other picks. This is a steal for the Eagles and he will make a great partner to Mitchell on the opposite side.

Number 94 Jaylx Hunt (LB) is the biggest project of the Eagles draft but being top 5 in athletic testing amongst edge players bodes well for him and the Eagles. Hunt brought in 9 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks this past year. The knock there would be not facing top competition and being in a very weak spot of college football.

Grabbing a backup to Barkley and Gainwell, Will Shipley (RB) brings some good experience but youth to the RB room. Shipley came off his best season in 2022 to have a bit of a down season in 2023 but the whole Clemson team was off in 2023 offensively. Shipley though, is no pushover and is a really powerful back at 5’ 11 205 pounds and ran a 4.39 at his pro day. He should see a few snaps each game and may even overtake Gainwell towards the end of the year.

Only a few teams addressed basically all their needs this draft and did it well, the Eagles were one of those teams. The first two picks were home runs and the later rounds filled needs to add youth. I am giving the Eagles an A + in this draft. The future for the Eagles is very bright and a run to the super bowl is not out of the cards and I would be surprised if they don’t make the conference championship.