This offseason is one of great uncertainty for the Philadelphia Eagles. A year ago the Eagles looked to be in a pretty good position moving forward. They just made the playoffs and looked to retool some areas and make another run for it. Then it all fell apart. The team faced many injuries and a ton of regression in key areas. After finishing the two seasons prior with a 9-7 record, the Eagles find themselves picking 6th overall after a 4-11-1 season.

Just a year after handing him a massive extension, Carson Wentz has now been traded to the Indianapolis Colts. Once thought to be the face of the Eagles franchise, Wentz is an Eagle no more. Super Bowl winning coach Doug Pederson is gone as well, in his place former Colts offensive coordinator Nick Surriani. After making big moves in the offseason, effectively ending the era that brought them a super bowl, what will the Eagles do this draft? Here is my 7 round mock draft for the Philadelphia Eagles.

Round 1

6th Overall: Devonta Smith, WR Alabama

No more overthinking things. No more trying to be smarter than everyone else in the room. We will not be trading down or taking a quarterback here. Devonta Smith is the right pick to make. We took Jalen Hurts in the 2nd round last year, let’s get him some help. Devonta Smith is the wide receiver Hurts needs, and honestly, the wide receiver that every quarterback needs. He is a great route runner and gains separation with ease. He has great hands and is a dangerous threat with the ball in his hands. He will quickly be the go-to weapon. Philly finally has a star receiver for the first time in years.

Round 2

38th Overall: Nick Bolton, LB Missouri

It cannot be overlooked the problem the Eagles have at linebacker. Philadelphia found a diamond in the rough in Alex Singleton, but we need more. Nick Bolton will be an immediate addition to this defense, with the ability to start day one at middle linebacker. He has great instincts and is a terror playing downhill. He makes plays in the run game and can drop back into zone coverage. With the Jim Schwartz era in Philadelphia in the past, Bolton could be the backbone of the new defense.

Round 3

70th Overall: Josh Myers, C Ohio State

The Eagles have to find a replacement for Jason Kelce. Kelce has been the part that has kept the Birds offensive line chugging forward for years. Kelce is now 33 and doesn’t have much time left in the league. It’s not even a guarantee that he will be back next season, especially if this team is undergoing a rebuild. Josh Myers will do well as a replacement for the long-time center.

84th Overall: Kelvin Joseph, CB Kentucky

Kelvin Joseph is one of the best cornerbacks that you haven’t heard of. He’s a long corner that is a fluid athlete. He has good hips and can run with the best of them. The Eagles have a desperate need at cornerback, and it needs to be addressed before it’s too late. Darius Slay had his ups and downs last year and is now 30. Avonte Maddox hasn’t proven that he can be that other boundary corner and looks more suited for a slot role. Joseph has the length and athleticism to finally be a solution for the Eagles corner troubles.

Round 5

151st Overall: Rhamondre Stevenson, RB Oklahoma

The Eagles need to add another running back to their room, a power back more specifically. Rhamondre Stevenson fits in nicely. He has great size at 5’11 227 and runs with the power to boot. He has underrated finesse and patience to his game as well. Miles Sanders can still be the main guy, but Stevenson can be a great complement, especially on early downs and in goal-line situations.

155th Overall: John Bates, TE Boise State

Forgotten in the Carson Wentz saga is the undetermined future of Zach Ertz. It looks increasingly more likely that the Eagles will be parting ways with one of the most productive players in team history. Dallas Goedert will become the guy, but this all leaves a hole at the backup tight end position. John Bates is one of the most underrated tight ends in the draft class. He has good hands and is a good blocker. Paired with Goedert, I think Bates can handle the dirty work, and allow Goedert to really break out as a receiving threat this year.

Round 6

192nd Overall: Cornell Powell, WR Clemson

After taking Smith, I believe the wide receiver 3 position is still of a question in Philly. Obviously, you hope Jalen Reagor steps up and really delivers as the #2, but who’s next in line then? I think Cornell Powell could impress over the offseason, and eventually latch on to that role. He has good route running technique and a reliable set of hands. With other big-play guys on the roster, a reliable WR3 in the vein of Jason Avant would be a good pick in the 6th round.

220nd Overall: Derrick Barnes, LB Purdue

Why not double-dip at linebacker considering how bad the position was this past year? Barnes has some intriguing upside. He looks huge at 245 pounds and has shown some upside rushing the passer, logging 7.5 sacks in his junior season as an edge rusher. He moved to middle linebacker this past year, showing more versatility. He showed some solid coverage reps at the Senior Bowl and could be an intriguing piece on the Eagles defense.

Round 7

228th Overall: Jacoby Stevens, S LSU

Ladies and gentlemen… it’s that time of the mock draft… WE HAVE REACHED THE JACOBY STEVENS PICK! If you have not read any of my previous mocks yet (here are my individual mocks for the Jaguars and Dolphins) my 7th round pick will almost always be LSU safety Jacoby Stevens. I believe there’s good upside in him as a versatile piece. Until other teams get wise and start taking him earlier, I’ll keep taking advantage of the Jacoby Stevens pick.

Writer

-By: Jacob Keppen

After weeks of rumors, the Eagles finally traded Carson Wentz. The initial return for Philly felt a bit underwhelming, but there is a chance for it to become a solid deal after a year.

It happened, folks. After a career-worst season in 2020, the Eagles traded Carson Wentz to the Colts and are seemingly moving on with 2020 draft pick Jalen Hurts. In exchange, Philadelphia received a third-round draft choice this year and a conditional pick for next season. If Carson Wentz plays 75% or more of snaps for the Colts, the conditional selection will be a first-rounder. If he plays just 70 but the Colts make the postseason, it will still be a first. If neither of those conditions are met, it will be just a second-rounder.

The Colts have been in the quarterback market since the abrupt retirement of Andrew Luck, going through one-year stints with current backup Jacoby Brissett and Chargers legend Philip Rivers. Rivers, with the help of a great defense, steered the team to an 11-5 record and a playoff spot, but he retired after a first-round exit. Now a team considered “a quarterback away from Super Bowl contention”, the Colts had to make a move quickly. They did.

For the Eagles, it was an interesting run with the 2016 #2 overall pick. After a shaky rookie season, Wentz nearly won MVP of the league in 2017, throwing for 3,296 yards, 33 TDs, and 7 INTs in 13 games (11-2 record). An injury caused him to miss the final three games of the regular season and the playoffs, but the Eagles were able to collect the franchise’s first Super Bowl ring despite. In 2018, he was shut down early once again thanks to a back injury, but he had a decent season, throwing for 21 TDs and 7 INTs. In 2019, after an injury-prone label started becoming attached to his name, Wentz dragged a terrible Eagles roster to the playoffs, racking up 4,039 yards, 27 TDs, and once again, just 7 INTs. 

It seemed as if he had shaken off the injury history and fully cemented himself as a franchise QB, but a questionable hit from Jadeveon Clowney knocked him out of his first playoff game just minutes in. After that, the Eagles did nothing to instill confidence in him, drafting a quarterback in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft. After a career-worst season inspired by a loss of mechanics, shaky offensive line play, and once again, a terrible receiving corps, Wentz was benched by the Eagles ¾ through the season. Hurts showed some flashes, and clearly, it was enough for Howie Roseman and the front office to move on from the once-beloved, but now overpriced passer.

The 2016 draft class has now seen its first and second overall picks get traded in the same offseason. With Dak Prescott’s free agency looming, could we see the three best signal-callers from that draft get moved? Stay tuned.

*All stats come from Pro Football Reference and StatMuse

Writer

-By: Micah Jimoh

Giants 5-7

Washington 5-7

Eagles 3-8-1

Cowboys 3-9

Since it’s the holiday season let’s think about the island of misfit toys in the classic Rudolph the rednosed reindeer. That’s one way to describe the poor teams in the NFC LEast, the outcasts in a rather deep NFC. The NFL is full of spectacular talent that has been displayed this year whether that is coming from Kyler Murray in Arizona or DK Metcalf in Seattle teams are emerging. The one division that stands alone in this weird season is the NFC East. This division has been through tons of injuries most importantly with franchise players like Saquon Barkley and Dak Prescott. With three new coaches in the division in Joe Judge, Ron Rivera, and Mike McCarthy one would think that Doug Pederson would have the upper hand. The Eagles have been spooked all season and Carson Wentz is taking all the blame. Philly’s year seems to have come to an end replacing Wentz on Sunday when struggling to keep up with the Packers. The bottom line is the NFC East is full of teams that still have several holes. Come January records will be put aside and one of these teams will be hosting a home playoff game. This week gave us a better glimpse of what team we may see host a playoff game in January.

Here’s the breakdown of each team's path to a playoff berth.

Washington Football Team: 

The Washington football team finally were the ones to knock off the Pittsburgh Steelers last week. This Alex Smith-led team is playing their best football of the season but Ron Rivera’s bunch needs to win one more game than the New York Giants to make the playoffs. Washington has proved they can be a force to be reckoned with in this division and opponents like San Francisco, Seattle, Philly, and Carolina give them the easiest schedule left in the division. Let it be a shock to nobody if the Washington Football Team is NFC East champions in 4 weeks.

Dallas Cowboys: 

Who would’ve thought there would’ve been a thanksgiving massacre when the Cowboys hosted Alex Smith and company last week. The Cowboys couldn’t defend the run to save their lives against both Washington and Baltimore. Antonio Gibson’s career day may have shut the door on Mike McCarthy’s year 1 in Dallas last week. And that game led to another poor performance on Tuesday in a blowout loss against the Ravens. They follow with games against San Francisco, Philly, Washington, and New York. There is no way a team with this many question marks both on the field and on Mike McCarthy’s staff can win out to give them a possible chance in the division. 

Philadelphia Eagles

The birds headed into Green Bay with their season on the line last week. The Eagles were blanked for most of the game due to Carson Wentz’s struggles. They then turned to Jalen Hurts for the first time all season. He was able to throw one touchdown but came up short in the end. The Eagles season is over and what fans are looking for now is an improvement from Jalen Hurts and this offense from here out. Hurts will go up against the Saints, Cardinals, Cowboys, and Washington to finish out the year. If he can win 2-3 of these games there may not be a quarterback debate next year. 

New York Giants

The Giants completed the biggest upset of the season last week knocking off Russell Wilson in Seattle. The G-men held the Seahawks offense to 12 points. Even with the absence of Daniel Jones, Jason Garrett’s offense found other contributors like Alfred Morris and Wayne Gallman who have played well since Saquon Barkley was sidelined. But, the play of Leonard Williams the ex Jet is what sparked the Giants defense in route to a win. Williams finished the day with 2.5 sacks, one coming on a 3rd down with little time remaining. The Giants are finally clicking and this young unit is starting to get attention throughout the league. If Joe Judge can continue to motivate this team, and find different ways to win, the Giants should be the team we see host a game in January, being that they won both matchups against Washington. It is now up to Daniel Jones to heal from his hamstring strain and finish out the year with now winnable matchups against the Cardinals, Browns, Ravens, and Cowboys. 

Final NFC East Prediction

Giants 8-8

Washington 7-9

Eagles 4-11-1

Cowboys 3-13

Writer

-By: Sam Kirk