A Tongue in Cheek Look at the Eagle’s 2009 Draft

What is it about the NFL draft that captivates football fans throughout the country? Starting with the completion of the Super Bowl, through the combine, pro days, free agency and accompanied by an endless supply of mock drafts across the Internet and ESPN specials, the excitement culminates with the draft itself, a weekend extravaganza lasting 2 full days.  During that time, your favorite team selects a group of 7 or so college players whom most professional football fans have never actually seen or heard of.

One probable reason for the enthusiasm is that in no other professional sport can your team immediately enhance its roster by obtaining up to 15% new team members in one sitting. Compare this to baseball, basketball or hockey, where a team is fortunate if it acquires a single player who can contribute in the upcoming season. We dream that our front office will “hit the lottery” like when the Steelers drafted 4 future Hall of Famers in the 1974 draft (1st – Lynn Swann, 2nd- Jack Lambert, 4th – John Stallworth and 5th – Mike Webster). Trivia quiz – who was their 3rd round pick? As Eagle fanatics, we pray that our management comes up big! And, its not that the chances are nil, but that they are just improbable.

For example:

1st – Shawn Andrews (McNabb was too early a pick to include)

2nd – DeSean Jackson

3rd – Brian Westbrook

4th – Todd Herremans

5th – Trent Cole

6th – Cecil Martin

7th – Raheem Brock (although he never signed here)

These are actual best picks made by the Birds in these rounds during the Andy Reid era (1999 – 2008). A draft of this stature would surely guarantee the promise of “multiple Super Bowl victories” made by owner Jeff Laurie.

On the other hand:

1st – Jerome McDougle

2nd – Matt McCoy

3rd – Matt Ware

4th – Gari Scott

5th – Jeremy Bloom

6th – Many

7th – Many more

Ouch!! This too is possible.

Which brings us to this week’s key topic – who will the Eagles be taking with their multitude of (10) selections in the 2009 draft?  Because of the past history of the Andy Reid era (quite varied and unpredictable), there are numerous options to consider. A few are discussed here:

1. 21 + 53 = 14

Also known as the “trading up” scenario, this was a much more viable option before the Eagles traded one of their 1st round picks last Friday for Jason Peters. With only a single 1st round pick remaining, who could entice them to trade it along with another high pick to move up about 6 to 8 places? Certainly not one of the premier OTs any more. Are they that high on any other player that they would pull the trigger?

2. UCONN Do It

In 2008, the University of Connecticut finished 8-5 and defeated the University of Buffalo in the International Bowl. Incredibly, most “expects” contend that they have three 1st round prospects (OT Will Beatty, RB Donald Brown and CB Darius Butler), far more than traditional powerhouses such as Florida, Ohio State, Penn State and everyone else. If this is truly the case, shouldn’t they have at least been playing for the National Championship, or maybe the NFC Championship? Would the Eagles be wise to focus on acquiring as many of this mighty trio as possible and become favorites to win the NFC East or at least the Big East?

3. The Boldin / Ocho Cinco / Edwards “trade for a star veteran” outcry

Most chatter over the last month seemed to involve the trading of one of our 1st round picks for a proven veteran who could come in and single handedly carry us to the Super Bowl. In fact, they did employ this strategy last week in making the Peters trade. Would they dare attempt to convert their remaining #1 pick for a seasoned WR? Of the 3 mentioned above, only the Boldin option is even remotely feasible, but this will not happen (too old, Cards want too much, Eagles don’t feel they are desperate for a wide receiver, etc.).

4. “Taking the 5th”

The Eagles have the resources to continuously trade down with their tops picks and wind up obtaining the entire 5th round of the draft. Preposterous? Not so fast; they already own four of these jewels and thus only need to acquire the other 26. What is the Eagle’s fixation with 5th round picks? Believe it or not, they have been relatively successful in this round in the Reid era (Celek, Gaither, Cole, Tapeh and Feeley). Unfortunately, they haven’t done much better in some of the earlier rounds.

There are also many fan benefits to this approach. We would not have to agonize about trading out of the 1st round, having them pass up our favorite prospect for another big, fat lineman or for that matter anything else that normally takes place on Saturday. But come Sunday at about 1 PM, sit back and take in the excitement as we select 30 consecutive picks (#139 through # 168).

5. Trading down (Oh no, not again?)

As we are well aware, the Eagles have “traded down” the past 2 drafts. They have also twice traded up (in 2003 – Jerome McDougle and 2004 – Shawn Andrews). While no one is too thrilled about the 2007 Kevin Kolb deal, they did obtain Stewart Bradley with one of the additional picks. However, the 2008 deal has proven to be a bonanza. With last week’s acquisition of Jason Peters with the pick from the Carolina trade, they’ve wound up with Peters, Trevor Laws and Quintin Demps for last year’s 19th pick. That’s quite a haul! Would Reid be emboldened based on this success to try this approach again?

6. Knowshon Nation

Most mock drafts that still have him available have the Eagles selecting Moreno with the 21st pick. They seem to conclude that the consensus top running back in this year’s draft would fill a key need for the Eagles. However, this logic must be weighed against the fact that Andy Reid has never taken a running back in either the 1st or 2nd round. Is this because the need was never there, or does it reflect a low value he places on that position?

So, who is it going to be?

I guess every draft article requires a prediction. What will the Eagles do this weekend with their 3 “quality” (21st, 53rd and 85th) picks? By most accounts, RB, TE and WR seem to be the Eagle’s greatest areas of need. Note that there is no defensive position in this list.

• Trading up – now that they have used one of their 1st round picks to acquire Peters, the likelihood of a trade up for a major offensive lineman is nil. They still have the resources to move up to the mid teens if there is someone there who excites them. Moreno? I don’t think they will select him at 21 (see below), yet alone move up to get him. Is there anyone else they covet to the point that they would go this direction? TE is out; I don’t see Brandon Pettigrew in the picture even at 21. If a WR (probably just Crabtree or Maclin) were to drop to the mid teens, would the Birds be interested? Or, what about a quality DE (Tyson Jackson, Everette Brown) or CB (Malcolm Jenkins), the 2 defensive positions the Eagles value? Don’t write off the defense option.

Trade up – the Eagles will not trade up!

• Staying put at 21 – What if Moreno is still available at 21? I feel they will wait until the 2nd or 3rd round to draft a running back. Pettigrew? No – there are lots of decent TE prospects available in rounds 2 and 3. Would they jump at a big, fast WR (Heyward-Bey)? Tempting, but I just feel that the Eagles will go “defense” with their initial pick if they stay at 21.

Staying at 21 – selection = Everette Brown, DE – Florida State. If he or Malcolm Jenkins (CB – Ohio State) are not available at 21, the Eagles will trade down.

• Trading down – I suspect that this option might be the way they go again. If they could get an offer similar to the Carolina deal last year, I think they would be hard pressed to resist. With an extra 2nd round pick, they could fill 2 key needs in round 2 and fill in their remaining needs in round 3 and below. And, it looks like you can obtain a Pro Bowl caliber player at a key position with a late round 1 pick (see Jason Peters)

Trading down – selections in round 2 = Donald Brown (RB – University of Connecticut) and one of the following tight ends (Jared Cook – South Carolina, Chase Coffman – Missouri, Shawn Nelson – Southern Mississippi)

Finally, (if you’re still actually reading this article), let me explain my credentials as an NFL draft expert. In 2008, I watched a grand total of 2 college football games (one Penn State game along with a portion of the National Championship game – although I now forget who played in it). I do not watch or follow the combine or pro day workouts. However, I do surf the Internet for the hundreds of mock drafts that are posted, so my knowledge consists primarily of what I read from other “experts” who think they know what they’re looking at. See how easy it is to become an expert analyst!

At any rate, enjoy the draft and pray that the Eagles pull a “74 Steelers” miracle. And by the way, the Steelers’ 3rd round pick in 1974 ….. no one (they had traded it away). But guess in which position the Steelers were selecting that year – the 21st slot! You can look it up!