Owners of the 25th overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, who could the Philadelphia Eagles target in the first round on Thursday night?
We are a day away from the 2019 NFL Draft and everyone wants to know who the Philadelphia Eagles will draft in the first round. Honestly, no one truly knows, mainly because there are 24 other picks that will happen before the Eagles select, not even mentioning that the Eagles could trade up or down, which would drastically change who they could select.
I believe they will trade down, and in my final seven-round mock draft for the Eagles, I have them doing just that.
However, if they stay at No. 25, there are a few players that make a ton of sense. There are also three players they should avoid in the first round. The Eagles are in a great spot heading into the draft, as they do not have many holes and look like a Super Bowl contender, even before they add an impact player with the 25th-overall pick.
Executive Vice President of Football Operations, Howie Roseman, has done a fantastic job building the roster back up, after building a championship roster for the 2017 NFL season. If Roseman is able to have a great 2019 NFL Draft, the Eagles will be a team that stays in the Super Bowl discussion all season.
That all starts with the first round, at pick 25. Here are five targets for the Eagles in the first round of the 2019 NFL Draft.
5. Rashan Gary, DT, Michigan
This is a name you probably haven’t seen much for the Eagles in the first round, mainly because Gary as been projected to go within the first 15 picks. However, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported that Gary has a torn labrum. That torn labrum will certainly make Gary slide on draft day. Some teams may pass on him with the thought that Gary could miss the entire season if he gets shoulder surgery instead of trying to play through the pain.
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If he starts sliding far enough, Gary could be a real possibility for the Eagles at No. 25. Philadelphia has shown by drafting Sidney Jones in 2017 that they are okay with taking a player who is injured. I would not be surprised if the Eagles are doing a lot more of their homework on Gary now, just in case he is on the board when they are drafting.
Gary’s stats have never shown how good he is, which could also scare some teams away. Gary only recorded 9.5 sacks in his three years at Michigan and only 23 tackles for a loss. For someone with such great talent, why hasn’t he been able to put up the elite stats as a top prospect should? That will be a big question the Eagles will need to answer. However, I think the talent is there.
Gary would be a dominant force with Fletcher Cox and Malik Jackson at defensive tackle. With those two in front of him, Philly would also be able to limit Gary’s snap counts if they decide to let him play through the injury in year 1.
4. Jeffery Simmons, DT, Mississippi State
Building off of Gary, former Mississippi State defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons tore his ACL during the pre-draft process. Had he not torn his ACL, I think Simmons would have easily been a top-10 pick. The Eagles would likely let Simmons sit the entire season with the knee injury, but there is always a chance they could activate him later in the year and have him back for their Super Bowl run.
In 2018, Simmons only had two sacks, but he had an impressive 18 tackles for a loss. Simmons is always disrupting the play and demands two people to block him. If you try to block Simmons one on one, he will make you look silly. He is so explosive off of the snap and he gets his hands on the blocker right away.
According to Connor Rogers of Bleacher Report, “There is a ton of buzz around Jeffery Simmons to the #Eagles or #Colts at 25 and 26.”
This is definitely something worth noting, as there is no debating how Simmons would fit on the Eagles defensive line. I think using the 25th pick would be too rich because of the knee injury, but it could definitely happen.
3. Nasir Adderley, S, Delaware
As draft season comes to a close, one player that has had a lot of hype to the Eagles is former Delaware safety Nasir Adderley. The former Blue Hen grew up 25 miles outside of Philadelphia in Malvern, PA. That alone has had a lot of people excited about the idea of Adderley coming home to play in Philly.
Adderley is such an intriguing prospect because he went to a small school, yet shows he has a ton of potential to succeed in the NFL. On the field, Adderley flashes the elite athletic ability you look for in a safety.
He flies around the field and is always trying to make plays. Another strength for Adderley is that he played safety and cornerback in college. The Eagles love versatile safeties because they like to move them all over the field.
Adderley may never be a safety that is an elite run defender, but he has shown that he can be an elite coverage safety. He has the range to play over the top along with the twitchiness to cover the slot. He would be a great fit in the Eagles secondary and it would not be surprising if the Eagles draft him in the first round.
2. Chauncey Gardner-Johnson, S, Florida
Another safety the Eagles could target in the first round — and my personal favorite safety in the 2019 NFL Draft — is former Florida Gators safety Chauncey Gardner-Johnson. Like Adderley, Gardner-Johnson is extremely versatile, but even more versatile than Adderley.
Gardner-Johnson can play every position: deep safety, box safety, slot cornerback, and whatever else you need him to do.
Unlike Adderley, Gardner-Johnson can help in the run game and he loves to fly around and hit people. It is rare to find a safety that can make as many plays in the passing game as he does in the run game. It may be a stretch to think Gardner-Johnson makes it to pick 25, but the Eagles should hope he does.
I have him mocked to the Eagles in the first round of my final seven-round mock draft because I love the idea of him in Jim Schwartz’s defense. Gardner-Johnson would give the Eagles a legit third safety and their safety of the future. Philly fans would fall in love with the way he plays the game and, in my opinion, he has All-Pro potential.
1. Marquise Brown, WR, Oklahoma
A weird name that has come up for the Eagles in the first round has been former Oklahoma wide receiver Marquise “Hollywood” Brown. The deep threat and elite speedster is coming off of a foot injury that kept him from testing at the NFL Combine, but his main concern is his size.
Brown is 5-9, 166 pounds, and those 166 pounds were at the combine where he didn’t run, but it’s hard to say where his natural playing weight is at. There is no denying that Brown has talent, but it remains to be seen if he can play with the big boys in the NFL.
Many people compare him to the greatest deep threat of all time, DeSean Jackson, whom the Eagles traded for this offseason. The comparison makes sense, as they are both undersized deep threats. Brown will need to show he can stay healthy in the NFL, but if he can, watch out. He will run past anyone deep and has elite, one of a kind, deep threat speed, just like Jackson.
Brown caught passes from Kyler Murray, who is likely to go No. 1 overall. If you watch any Murray film, a lot off his deep ball touchdowns are easy because Brown burnt the entire secondary so fast it is unreal. Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz would love to throw the ball deep to the man that is made for the bright lights — with a nickname like “Hollywood”, you have to be. Brown may be small, but he could be a big part of the Eagles future.