Posts tagged "2013 NFL Draft"

2013 NFL Draft: Philadelphia Eagles Fifth Round Pick – Earl Wolff

With the 136th pick of the 2013 NFL Draft the Philadelphia Eagles selected safety Earl Wolff from North Carolina State. Wolff is a good athlete who posted strong measurables at the combine. He is average size for a safety with above average speed. He tends to overrun plays a bit and will need to improve on his tackling to succeed at the next level.

He joins a somewhat crowded safety position in Philadelphia with incumbents Kurt Coleman and Nate Allen being joined by free agent signees Kenny Phillips and Patrick Chung. The team also re-signed Colt Anderson this off season.

On the surface it looks as though Kurt Coleman is going to be the odd man out entering camp. I doubt Wolff challenges for a starting stop right away and probably needs a year or two of seasoning before that is the case. Don’t be surprised if he pushes Colt Anderson out of the door though. Anderson provides little more than special teams play and was horrible when pressed into playing safety over the last month of the season.

2013 NFL Draft: Philadelphia Eagles Fourth Round Selection – Matt Barkley

The Eagles traded up with the Jacksonville Jaguars to move up to the 98th spot and take USC quarterback Matt Barkley at the top of the fourth round. Barkley is an interesting pickup for the Eagles. He was once regarded as the blue chip quarterback in his class but tumbled mightily due to a disastrous senior season.

He joins an already crowded depth chart at quarterback with Michael Vick, Nick Foles, Dennis Dixon, and G. J. Kinne already there. Adding Barkley to the mix brings up some interesting questions as we head into training camp. It seems unlikely the team will carry Vick, Foles, and Barkley but they may do just that. Or, will they look to trade Foles or release Vick when the time comes?

From a purely strategic and forward thinking standpoint it would make sense to move on from Vick and roll with Foles and Barkley as the top two guys as their skillsets are more attuned with each other than Vick and Barkley.

It seems unlikely that Barkley will be brought in to challenge for the starting job right away. This is likely a case of the Eagles seeing a guy who they thought to be a great value pick and as a guy who could develop into their starter two years down the road.

2013 NFL Draft: Philadelphia Eagles Third Round Pick – Bennie Logan

With the 67th pick in the 2013 NFL Draft the Philadelphia Eagles selected defensive tackle Bennie Logan out of LSU. I am not a huge fan of this pick for a couple of reasons, the first being that this feels like a reach. They could have traded back to the middle or the end of the round and still gotten him and there was a very good chance he is still on the board when they pick in the fourth round.

Another reason I don’t like it is there were far better 3-4 defensive line prospects still on the board when pick 67 rolled around. Georgia’s Johnathan Jenkins and Alabama’s Jesse Williams were both still on the board and both were much more highly regarded than Logan is.

With that said Jesse Williams is still on the board as we head into the 4th round and he could be a target for the Eagles on Saturday.

Logan is expected to challenge for playing time as an end in the 3-4 and could move over to tackle in 4-3 fronts. The main issue with Logan is he is best suited to play tackle in a 4-3 defense. He does not quite have the size to play the nose nor does he really have the speed and quickness to be a play-maker at the end spot.

2013 NFL Draft: Philadelphia Eagles Second Round PIck – Zach Ertz

With the 34th pick in the 2013 NFL Draft the Philadelphia Eagles snagged Stanford tight end Zach Ertz. I really like this pickup for the Eagles.

Incumbent veteran starter Brent Celek struggled with drop balls last season and it has been a chore for him to stay healthy the past couple of seasons. Celek is still a solid pass catching tight end but Ertz is slightly bigger and stronger and does not have issues with dropping the ball.

Celek has a step Ertz in terms of speed and getting down the field but Ertz is the better route runner and uses that to make up for his lack of straight line speed.

Look for Ertz to challenge for the starting job out of the gate. His selection could mean the end of Clay Harbor in Philly or Celek could be shown the door in an effort to save some money.

2013 NFL Draft: Philadelphia Eagles First Round Pick – Lane Johnson

With the fourth pick of the 2013 NFL Draft the Eagles selected offensive tackle Lane Johnson out of the University of Oklahoma. Johnson is one of those guys who sky-rocketed up draft boards on the heels of strong combine workouts.

I like this pick for the Eagles. He is very athletic and played in an up-tempo offense at Oklahoma and played quarterback and tight end before converting to offensive line.

With this pick it solves a couple of issues for the Eagles. He will be an upgrade over Todd Herremans at right tackle who, in turn, will now slide back inside and be an upgrade over Danny Watkins at right guard. In addition to that he also provides some insurance in the event Jason Peters is not longer able to play at an elite level.

2013 NFL Draft: Handicapping the Fourth Pick

The 2013 NFL Draft is just over a week away and the Philadelphia Eagles currently hold the fourth pick in the draft. There has been a lot of speculation as to what the Eagles will do with this pick. Will they take a defensive tackle or an edge rusher to play in the 3-4 defense? Do they land one of the stud offensive tackles in this draft? Or, will they roll the dice on a potential franchise quarterback? What are the chances any of this happens come next Thursday?
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2013 NFL Draft: Defensive Needs

On the heels of discussing the offensive needs for the Philadelphia Eagles heading into the 2013 NFL Draft it is time to talk about the team’s defensive needs as we approach draft day. The team is expected to change from a base 4-3 defensive front to a 3-4. The team has already made a lot of moves to sure up the defense via free agency adding a pass rushing LB in Connor Barwin and adding four new members to the secondary.
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2013 NFL Draft: Offensive Needs

The 2013 NFL Draft is rapidly approaching and it is time to discuss post-free agency pre-draft team needs on offense. The team is pretty well set at the skill positions for the time being with Pro Bowl talent at both the running back and wide receiver positions. The Tight End position could use an elite level talent and the offensive line needs to be re-stocked with younger players who could potentially step in and play right away if need be. The looming question, without a real long term solution at QB in the fold, is there a QB in this draft that Chip Kelly and Pat Shurmur are enamored with enough to spend the 4th overall pick on him.

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