Someone asked about what the Eagles look for in a prospect. I started on that post, but got sidetracked due to a busy day. I'll get it done in the next week (hopefully day or two).
Let's answer some draft questions.
RE: how much do the Eagles value FS?
Reader mcud77 gave a pretty good answer. We were spoiled for the entire Reid era by the presence of some guy named Brian Dawkins. We could build around him and behind him. Dawk's presence meant we had the luxury of taking Safeties in the middle of the draft to develop for the future. Now that Dawk is gone, we have a hole there. I think that opens us up to aggressively pursuing a FS in the draft. I don't know that we'll break the bank for Eric Berry, but you can bet we'll look into moving up for him. The price will be pretty high and I don't know if we'll bite.
mcud77 is also right in his point that we have to be careful about taking projects. I love Earl Thomas, but he has 2 stinkin' years of college experience. Is that guy ready to run the deep middle of my secondary? I don't know. Chad Jones is Junior, but only has 19 starts. Do I trust him? Nate Allen of USF might be the guy I trust the most. He is a Senior and 3-year starter. He has size, skill, athletic ability, experience, production, and a good postseason showing. He doesn't have the ceiling of Berry or Thomas, but feels pretty safe.
RE: Eric Berry talk a waste of time?
No. Absolutely not. We rarely have a shot to get a great player. Berry feels like he will be a great one. I think the Eagles would be fools not to figure out his worth to us and just how much we're willing to pay. You don't sell out the whole draft to get him. You find a pain threshold you can live with. You make some calls. There are a handful of special players in the NFL. Berry just reeks of a guy who will be special. I won't be mad if we can't get him, but I'd be really upset if we didn't at least look into it aggressively.
RE: Darren Sharper
No thanks. Overrated. PE.com was just reporting a story by someone else. Those guys aren't hyping up Sharper as a future Eagle.
RE: JAX trade
For those who don't have the deal memorized:
The Jaguars traded their first-round pick (No. 26 overall), two third-round picks and a fourth-round pick with Baltimore for the No. 8 pick, which they used on Florida DE Derrick Harvey.
The deal didn't pan out for the Jags. So far. Harvey has been a pedestrian player. I don't think this is a lesson not to deal up. Just make sure you find the right guy and have the setting for him to succeed.
RE: trade for Glenn Dorsey?
I would take a flier on Dorsey if the price was right, but I would not give up a valuable resource for him. There is a high bust rate at DT and Glenn isn't setting the world on fire.
RE: using 2011 1st rounder
Interesting idea. Trade our 2011 pick in the 1st to move up. Then trade a 2nd this year to get back a 1st next year. I guess the question is why not just use the 2nd rounder this year to move up and cut out the shuffling around. Future picks are worth less because you have to wait to use them. Creative thinking.
RE: Maclin type sliders
RB C.J. Spiller, maybe. We're not looking for a RB early, but he could be too good to pass up.
RE: Mayock on Thomas/Berry
Mike is great at what he does, but he's having post-concussion syndrome from a hit in Junior High when it comes to this subject. I just don't see any way Earl Thomas is a better prospect than Eric Berry. I understand his love for Thomas, but he's gone a bit overboard. I have yet to hear him acknowledge Earl's performance in the Natl Title game. He was terrible when trying to tackle Mark Ingram.
RE: building the draft board
Long subject. I'll see if I can put something together.
RE: guys who slip
The Eagles have done a good job of picking up guys who slide. I need to study the board and think about this. Good question and it deserves a quality answer.
As for the notion about the new format hurting us...I agree. Unorganized teams will now have 20 some odd hours to re-group and come up with a new plan. I don't like that at all. We went into the draft highly organized and benefited from the chaos. No more.
RE: Anthony Davis
The Eagles look at a lot of underclassmen. They believe in being super-thorough. I can't see Davis as our kind of target. I bet this is either us doing due diligence or it is a smokescreen. I'll be disappointed if Davis is a pick of ours.
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6 comments:
Tommy,
I would imagine Anthony Davis' visit is due diligence. He's a local kid, so his visit shouldn't count against our limit. Thats not to say Andy wouldn't take another OL. Merely that I think they'd bring him in regardless.
Re: Safety Help
I am beginning to believe that the Eagles are going to try for Berry or Earl Thomas, and if they don't get them, that they'll address the position by trade, rather than take a kid from the 2nd tier (Allen, Burnett, Jones, etc.) As much as I hate the idea of going forward with Macho as our FS, I think Harris in year 2 > taking another developmental project, when you take into consideration what said project is going to cost in draft capital.
I am curious to know why DT's tend to bust like they do. Glenn Dorsey was a man among men and touted as perhaps the best player in the draft when the chiefs took him, how can someone who used to throw around OL like a ragdolls suddenly become a pedestrian player in the NFL? I know the level of competition ramps up, but you'd figure that someone with that kind of ability would be able to outplay kids who were taken much further behind him.
Maybe I'm getting caught up in the idea that DT is more of a brute strength/technique position and therefore it should be easier to predict how college DT's are going to transition to the pro game.
In Dorsey's case, I imagine the fact that KC plays in the 3-4 has as much to do with his success, or lack of, as anything else.
He didn't exactly set the world on fire his rookie season though. I do think he needs a change of scenery. It would be nice to see him and Trevor Laws switch places, as Laws is probably better off as a 3-4 DE than the gap system we use in a 4-3.
Tommy, have you checked out this guy named Akwasi Owusu-Ansah?
Turns out he played in a really small school in PA named Indiana University of Pennsylvania. He didn't get alot of attention from the draft experts because he didn't play in a big program.
But he recently ran a 4.3 40 at 6'1" 205lbs and did very well in his drills during his Pro Day. He projects as a CB or a S at the next level, and seems to have the physical tools to excel in either position.
Peter King mentioned him in his MMQB article recently, and there's a good article about him here: http://www.sportingnews.com/college-football/article/2010-03-23/who-guy-iup-cb-akwasi-owusu-ansah
What do you think? Could he be a major sleeper in this year's draft? Might he be similar to Eric Berry in terms of skillset but was ignored only because of his status as a small-school prospect?
I think the Eagles should take a flier on this guy, personally.
DTs have a high bust rate, but they also generally take 2 to 3 years to develop. In college it's more about natural talent than technique, mostly true about any position.
All draftees have the raw, natural talent, not all can grasp the techniques needed to excel.
@ Myron
That name seems to be floating around as a third round prospect and as you say for no reason other than he played at a small school. Could be a great pickup for the Eagles to grab him with our first pick in the third. They obviously have no problem picking small school players. With mixed success mind.
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