Dave Zangaro goes in depth on the first round of the NFL Draft and the different ways the Eagles could approach the No. 12 pick.
Back in late March, the Eagles traded back from No. 6 to No. 12 in the 2021 draft, but there’s still no guarantee they pick at 12.
Howie Roseman is never shy about making trades in the draft to maximize value and there’s now the thought that the Eagles could trade back into the top 10 on April 29.
That’s a possibility that SI’s Albert Breer brought up in MMQB on Monday morning:
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Philadelphia sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
“And while other teams, like New England, have been marked as trade-up teams (with quarterbacks as targets), here’s one I was a little surprised by: The Eagles. Philly’s sitting at No. 12 and did well enough in the trade with Miami that it could potentially make a short move back into the top 10 and still come out loaded with draft assets. What would it be for? I’d never totally rule out a quarterback for Philly, but I think corner is a possibility, with teams right above them having that need. And for what it’s worth, in addition to exploring a move up, the Eagles have also explored a move down.”
It’s an interesting thought, that the Eagles could still trade up or down depending on how the board falls. It’s unclear if this is a realistic possibility or if Roseman’s reputation as a draft day trader has folks thinking he’d do it again.
Breer mentions that perhaps the Eagles would trade up to take a corner. It’s widely considered that the top three corners in this draft are Patrick Surtain II from Alabama, Jaycee Horn from South Carolina and Caleb Farley from Virginia Tech. More often than not, Surtain has been ranked as the top corner. Could the Eagles trade up a few spots to land him, perhaps jumping in front of a defense-needy team like the Cowboys? It makes some sense.
But perhaps the Eagles could also trade up to snag one of the top three receivers on the board. Those top three are considered to be Ja’Marr Chase from LSU and DeVonta Smith and Jaylen Waddle from Alabama.
NFL
In our latest NBC Sports Philadelphia mock draft, Adam Hermann has the Eagles trading up to No. 8 with the Panthers to take Waddle, the explosive playmaker who missed some of the 2020 season with an ankle injury.
If we’re talking about a trade-down scenario, it’s not like teams would have to jump in front of the Chargers (at 13) to get a quarterback, but if QBs start to slip, the Eagles might want to trade down. Because if the Eagles truly aren’t interested in one of these QBs, then their best scenario is for five quarterbacks to go in the first 11 picks, which is certainly possible if other teams trade up.
But if the QBs start to slide, it means teams are taking non-QBs and the Eagles will be left with fewer top choices.
Either way, Roseman is always willing to pull off trades if he thinks it’ll maximize the Eagles’ value. That’s why all options are on the table.
Subscribe to the Eagle Eye podcast:
Apple Podcasts | Google Play | Spotify | Stitcher | Art19 | Watch on YouTube
