2016 NFL Draft: Philadelphia Eagles Team Needs

By Vincent Frank on Wednesday, March 16th 2016
2016 NFL Draft: Philadelphia Eagles Team Needs

The Philadelphia Eagles are coming off a disappointing seven-win season under former head coach Chip Kelly after he pretty much did what he could to turn over the roster the previous spring. With multiple players that he acquired already off the roster, there are a nice amount of holes for the team to fill heading into the draft. 

The good news for new head coach Doug Pederson and Co. is that Philadelphia was able to move up to the eighth pick in the upcoming draft by virtue of trading Kiko Alonso and Byron Maxwell, two of Kelly's mistakes, to the Buffalo Bills.  

In continuing with this 32 article series, here's a look at the top needs for the Philadelphia Eagles as well as a seven-round mock draft we ran through the FanSpeak mock draft simulator. We manually picked for Philadelphia while the picks for all other 31 teams were selected by the simulator. 

 

1. Cornerback

Losing Byron Maxwell in and of itself isn't a big deal. He was absolutely atrocious for the first half of his only season in Philadelphia, picking it up slightly down the stretch. At the very least, Philadelphia couldn't justify keeping him around at his price tag if another team was actually willing to trade assets for him. Even then, there's simply a lack of capable bodies at corner for the Eagles. 

Eric Rowe is a good young cover guy. He played well in spurts as a rookie last season and should slot in at one outside corner position. Outside of that, there isn't a lot to see here. The Eagles did bring in two of new defensive coordinator's Jim Schwartz's guys in Ron Brooks and Leodis McKelvin in free agency, but it's foolish to think either can be a capable starter. Meanwhile, Nolan Carroll fits in better as a slot guy. Needless to say, there's a major need here. 

 

2. Running Back

Yet another trade of a big contract creating a hole on Philadelphia's roster. With DeMarco Murray now in Tennessee, the Eagles have to figure out what to do at running back. Ryan Mathews remains on the roster, but there's rumors he might also be traded.

Meanwhile, Darren Sproles has never been a three-down running back in the NFL. While he's going to be a darn good COP back in 2016, the Eagles would be utterly foolish to rely on him for more than that. There's simply not much remaining on the free-agent market, so Philadelphia would be best served looking at filling this hole in the draft. 

 

3. Inside Linebacker

There's a reason Chip Kelly traded for Kiko Alonso when he was the head of Philadelphia's personnel last March. While that might not have worked out with Alonso now in Miami, there's still a pretty big hole here. As of right now, Nigel Bradham is slated to start next to Mychal Kendricks. That could be a decent one-year solution, but it's not going to be the long-term answer.

If somehow Myles Jack were to be there at eight, that's something the Eagles might have to think about. If not, a mid-round project could work. 

 

4. Wide Receiver

Jordan Matthews took a dramatic step back as a sophomore last season, consistently putting the ball on the turf throughout the season. In this, he went from being considered a future No. 1 receiver to someone that will have to rebuild his stock as a primary weapon for Sam Bradford once again this season. Based on Matthews previous production, he's not the issue here. Neither is 2015 first-round pick Nelson Agholor, who showed flashes last season.

It's the depth at this position that has to be the biggest concern. Simply put, Philadelphia doesn't have anyone on the roster that can even be considered a No. 3 receiver on a good passing offense. 

 

5. Quarterback

Committed to Sam Bradford for this upcoming season and after signing Chase Daniel to an expensive backup quarterback deal, this isn't an immediate need. Though, there's no one in Philadelphia's front office that can reasonably conclude either of these quarterbacks represent the team's future. In this, the Eagles should look at adding a project guy in the mid rounds, if not a franchise-type signal caller in the top 10. 

 

Mock Draft
Round Player Position College
1 Vernon Hargreaves Cornerback Florida
3 C.J. Prosise Running Back Notre Dame
3 Kentrell Brothers Linebacker Missouri
4 Kenny Lawler Wide Receiver California
5 Cardale Jones Quarterback Ohio State
5 Jayron Kearse Safety Clemson
6 Curt Maggitt Linebacker Tennessee
7 Tyler Johnstone Offensive Tackle Oregon
7 D'haquille Williams Wide Receiver Auburn

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