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The DiCecco Daily: Eagles-Only Mock Draft 2.0, Part 2 · Inside the Birds: A Philadelphia Eagles Podcast

• 0:09
  Speaker 1: Hello, and welcome into another episode of the Checko Daily.
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: Andrew Dechecko here Eagles beat reporter for insidethebirds dot Com.
• 0:17
  Speaker 1: And today we're going to do part two of my
• 0:21
  Speaker 1: mock draft, so part one, in case you haven't heard it,
• 0:24
  Speaker 1: I did Day one and Day two, and then today
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: I will do the remaining.
• 0:29
  Speaker 2: Picks for the Eagles.
• 0:31
  Speaker 1: I will go back and remind everyone where I went,
• 0:35
  Speaker 1: and you can listen to the first podcast for a
• 0:37
  Speaker 1: more comprehensive analysis. Round one pick twenty three, Blake Miller
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: offensive tackle, Clemson, Round two pick number fifty four, Chris Brazil,
• 0:49
  Speaker 1: the second wide receiver from Tennessee, Round three pick number
• 0:54
  Speaker 1: sixty eight, Joshua Joseph's edge rusher from Tennessee, and round
• 0:59
  Speaker 1: three pick number ninety eight, Eli Raridan, tight end Notre Dame.
• 1:05
  Speaker 1: We'll pick things up in this podcast in round four
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: with pick number one fourteen. This is via the Atlanta
• 1:12
  Speaker 1: Falcons ZAKEI. Wheatley safety Penn State. The safety room will
• 1:18
  Speaker 1: be without Red blanken Hip and Sydney Brown, who land
• 1:22
  Speaker 1: with the Houston Texans and the Atlanta Falcons, respectively. And
• 1:25
  Speaker 1: with this shakeup, the contingent is now comprised of Drew mccouba,
• 1:30
  Speaker 1: Marcus Epps, J T. Gray, and Andre sam It's important
• 1:34
  Speaker 1: to note that versatile defensive back Michael Carter the second
• 1:37
  Speaker 1: will be in the mix and is a name to
• 1:39
  Speaker 1: file away and second year pro Brandon Johnson, who like Carter,
• 1:43
  Speaker 1: is a nickel by trade, moonlighted at the position late
• 1:47
  Speaker 1: last season. He actually started the season finale, and I
• 1:51
  Speaker 1: think he injured himself after fifteen or eighteen snaps and
• 1:54
  Speaker 1: then Michael Carter moved from nickel to safety and played
• 1:58
  Speaker 1: the rest of the game there and pretty well both
• 2:00
  Speaker 1: players did for that matter.
• 2:03
  Speaker 2: But similar to edge rusher, the Eagles could.
• 2:06
  Speaker 1: Improve that room between now in the draft, but I
• 2:08
  Speaker 1: have them adding to the position early on Day three.
• 2:12
  Speaker 2: You can never make assumptions.
• 2:14
  Speaker 1: Wheatley's six foot three, two hundred and three pounds and
• 2:17
  Speaker 1: he comes with rare size for the position, which complements
• 2:20
  Speaker 1: his athleticism. And you pair that kind of range with
• 2:24
  Speaker 1: a ballhawking coverman in Macouba, and I think that that
• 2:27
  Speaker 1: really would arm Vic Fangio with increased optionality. And last season,
• 2:32
  Speaker 1: for those curious, Wheatley produced seventy four tackles, two for loss,
• 2:36
  Speaker 1: an interception, a pass defended, and a Fumber recovery.
• 2:40
  Speaker 2: All over twelve games.
• 2:42
  Speaker 1: Moving on to Round four, pick number one, thirty seven,
• 2:46
  Speaker 1: Chris McClellan, defensive tackle, Missouri. So you look at the
• 2:51
  Speaker 1: Eagles defensive tackle room, and earlier this month they extended
• 2:55
  Speaker 1: defensive tackle Jordan Davis and a pretty substantial payday.
• 3:00
  Speaker 2: Looms for Jalen Carter.
• 3:03
  Speaker 1: But when you forecast the future, it is fair to
• 3:06
  Speaker 1: wonder if they can also invest in Moro Jomo. The
• 3:10
  Speaker 1: Eagles did select Ty Robinson in the fourth round last spring,
• 3:14
  Speaker 1: he didn't play all that much and it's sort of
• 3:16
  Speaker 1: a wild card going into twenty twenty six, and fourth
• 3:20
  Speaker 1: year pro Byron Young provided quality depth last season. I
• 3:23
  Speaker 1: really thought that Byron Young was sort of an unsung
• 3:25
  Speaker 1: hero because he had to step in and play more
• 3:28
  Speaker 1: snaps than anyone envisioned because Jalen Carter had the shoulders
• 3:33
  Speaker 1: injuries and things like that, and I thought, especially against
• 3:36
  Speaker 1: the Chargers, that really stands out to me. He did
• 3:40
  Speaker 1: some quality things with the snaps that he was given.
• 3:43
  Speaker 1: So he's still there. But adding a young player in
• 3:46
  Speaker 1: addition to what you already have, I think would help
• 3:49
  Speaker 1: ensure that the interior has that long term security, and
• 3:54
  Speaker 1: so I went with the defensive tackle here.
• 3:56
  Speaker 2: I considered Zane Durant from Penn State.
• 3:58
  Speaker 1: He's a little bit more under size, six foot one,
• 4:02
  Speaker 1: under three hundred pounds, but I have them going with
• 4:05
  Speaker 1: a different defensive tackle in McClellan, who's six foot four,
• 4:09
  Speaker 1: three thirteen a little bit more of a traditional build,
• 4:12
  Speaker 1: but it goes beyond that.
• 4:13
  Speaker 2: Obviously, he's strong at the point of attack. He has
• 4:16
  Speaker 2: active hands.
• 4:17
  Speaker 1: Needed to disengage from lineman, and his eight tackles for
• 4:20
  Speaker 1: loss last season highlight his effectiveness behind the line of scrimmage.
• 4:25
  Speaker 1: He's also made strides as a pass rusher, which is
• 4:27
  Speaker 1: important to note here. He's not just a one trick pony,
• 4:30
  Speaker 1: and that was evidenced by his career high six sacks
• 4:33
  Speaker 1: last year. The Missouri product does project as a rotational
• 4:37
  Speaker 1: piece equipped to handle volume if necessary, and then who knows,
• 4:41
  Speaker 1: depending on what happens down the line. With the Eagles
• 4:44
  Speaker 1: defensive tackle room, I'm looking at Morojomo. Maybe someone like
• 4:48
  Speaker 1: a Chris McClellan can step in there and give you
• 4:51
  Speaker 1: similar production. Although those who have listened to me you
• 4:55
  Speaker 1: already know that moro Jomo is one of my favorite
• 4:59
  Speaker 1: players to watch on the Eagles defense because of the
• 5:02
  Speaker 1: way that he uses leverage to his advantage.
• 5:04
  Speaker 2: He plays with a nasty streak.
• 5:06
  Speaker 1: He's extremely physical, uses his hands well, really long arms,
• 5:11
  Speaker 1: but his unique dimensions make it very difficult for offensive
• 5:15
  Speaker 1: linemen to get a hand on him, and it's really
• 5:18
  Speaker 1: fun watching him work and defeat blocks and get into
• 5:21
  Speaker 1: the backfield and be that disruptive player. Those kind of
• 5:24
  Speaker 1: players with those kind of qualities tend to command a
• 5:28
  Speaker 1: decent amount of change on the open market. So all
• 5:31
  Speaker 1: that being said, it may be difficult to retain Moro
• 5:34
  Speaker 1: Jomo when you have to pay others, So you might
• 5:37
  Speaker 1: need to look at defensive tackle in addition to all
• 5:40
  Speaker 1: the other positions of need just to make sure that
• 5:42
  Speaker 1: there's not a lull that you have that long term
• 5:46
  Speaker 1: security as I was alluding to, And I think that
• 5:48
  Speaker 1: might be a good spot to grab somebody, and he
• 5:51
  Speaker 1: would be someone who would fit the bill and probably
• 5:54
  Speaker 1: fit within that range. We're still a month out. Things
• 5:58
  Speaker 1: can change, but that's kind of where I have him
• 5:59
  Speaker 1: peg right now. Zane Durant would be another player, although he,
• 6:05
  Speaker 1: as I mentioned, is a little bit more of the
• 6:07
  Speaker 1: undersized variety, and there's a little bit more questions as
• 6:10
  Speaker 1: to how his skill set may translate to the program
• 6:14
  Speaker 1: to the pro game.
• 6:15
  Speaker 2: But also in Vic Fangio's defense.
• 6:19
  Speaker 1: Round five, pick number one fifty two, this also via
• 6:23
  Speaker 1: the Atlanta Falcons, I had him going with Trey Zoon
• 6:26
  Speaker 1: the third. He's an offensive lineman from Texas A and M.
• 6:31
  Speaker 2: In my estimation, the.
• 6:32
  Speaker 1: Most understated Eagles free agent departure might be veteran offensive
• 6:35
  Speaker 1: lineman Brett Toath, who inexpensively offered depth along the interior
• 6:40
  Speaker 1: along with invaluable experience.
• 6:42
  Speaker 2: That said, this class is right with replacements.
• 6:44
  Speaker 1: Brett isn't irreplaceable, but I thought he made a lot
• 6:47
  Speaker 1: of sense to keep in the fold, and I also
• 6:50
  Speaker 1: believe that his skill set is a little bit more
• 6:54
  Speaker 1: appealing I would think to the presumed style that the
• 6:57
  Speaker 1: Eagles are going to implement in run designs and things
• 7:01
  Speaker 1: like that under Sean Mannion.
• 7:02
  Speaker 2: But nevertheless, I have them.
• 7:05
  Speaker 1: Finding a suitable replacement or at least a player who
• 7:08
  Speaker 1: I liked at the college level that I think could
• 7:11
  Speaker 1: translate into a versatile interior linement at the pro level.
• 7:16
  Speaker 1: And look, he was a four year starter at left
• 7:20
  Speaker 1: tackle for the Aggies. But Zoom the third is six
• 7:23
  Speaker 1: foot six, three hundred and twelve pounds and he has
• 7:25
  Speaker 1: thirty two and a half inch arms, so he doesn't
• 7:28
  Speaker 1: have the length needed to play at tackle long term
• 7:32
  Speaker 1: in the NFL, and I think he projects best as
• 7:35
  Speaker 1: a center guard at the next level. He may not
• 7:38
  Speaker 1: have the desired athleticism either for this offense, but I
• 7:42
  Speaker 1: think the versatility and experience make for an appealing Day
• 7:46
  Speaker 1: three swing. So I have the Eagles taking two offensive
• 7:49
  Speaker 1: linemen in this draft, one along the interior who I
• 7:52
  Speaker 1: expect to transition to the interior when he gets to
• 7:55
  Speaker 1: the NFL, and Blake Miller being the first round pick
• 8:01
  Speaker 1: round five. This is a player that he could go
• 8:05
  Speaker 1: anywhere from round three, four or five, It depends on
• 8:08
  Speaker 1: where you land.
• 8:10
  Speaker 2: I view him more.
• 8:11
  Speaker 1: As a Day three guy. He could go round four,
• 8:14
  Speaker 1: but he doesn't. He's a little bit of an older prospect.
• 8:18
  Speaker 1: It wasn't until his fifth year that he was able
• 8:21
  Speaker 1: to really make some waves. But last week, the Eagles
• 8:23
  Speaker 1: traded at twenty seven twenty twenty seven seventh round pick
• 8:28
  Speaker 1: for veteran quarterback Andy Dalton, and I have them adding
• 8:32
  Speaker 1: another quarterback here at pick number one, seventy eight Cole Payton,
• 8:36
  Speaker 1: quarterback North Dakota State, and look number two quarterback Tanner
• 8:40
  Speaker 1: McKee is currently.
• 8:41
  Speaker 2: In the fold.
• 8:43
  Speaker 1: I think the Eagles are going to be a little
• 8:45
  Speaker 1: bit reluctant to move him.
• 8:46
  Speaker 2: That's not to say that they won't.
• 8:47
  Speaker 1: Certainly, if they have an appealing offer, I would think
• 8:51
  Speaker 1: that they would pounce on that.
• 8:52
  Speaker 2: But there's nothing in the in the.
• 8:55
  Speaker 1: Immediate I should say that in the immediacy of things.
• 8:58
  Speaker 1: I don't get the sense from understanding that the Eagles are,
• 9:02
  Speaker 1: you know, hastily trying to move Tanner McKee. If an
• 9:05
  Speaker 1: opportunity presents itself, that's something that I'm sure they would entertain.
• 9:09
  Speaker 1: But they value the quarterback position perhaps more than any
• 9:12
  Speaker 1: other team, and I have them adding another one here
• 9:15
  Speaker 1: in Cole Payton, and they've never shied away from targeting
• 9:18
  Speaker 1: a developmental arm in the draft. You look at Kyle
• 9:21
  Speaker 1: McCord being the most recent example, and I suspect that
• 9:25
  Speaker 1: they returned to the well and try to find that
• 9:28
  Speaker 1: guy in this draft class. And in Peyton, who's six
• 9:31
  Speaker 1: foot three, two hundred and thirty three pounds, the Eagles
• 9:33
  Speaker 1: would be getting a tough, dual threat quarterback.
• 9:36
  Speaker 2: With intriguing arm talent.
• 9:38
  Speaker 1: He didn't become a full time starter until last season
• 9:41
  Speaker 1: as a fifth year senior, as I was alluding to,
• 9:44
  Speaker 1: but he did pass for two thousand and seven one
• 9:46
  Speaker 1: hundred and nineteen yards, sixteen touchdowns and four interceptions, and
• 9:49
  Speaker 1: he averaged five point seven yards per carry.
• 9:52
  Speaker 2: So he liked the.
• 9:54
  Speaker 1: Dual threat ability and I think in this offense that
• 9:56
  Speaker 1: would be something that could be enticing. We'll see if
• 10:00
  Speaker 1: team looks at that kind of well rounded skill set
• 10:03
  Speaker 1: and maybe overdrafts some. But I still think that he
• 10:06
  Speaker 1: needs a little bit of time to marinate, not a
• 10:08
  Speaker 1: lot of college experience, and he's a little bit older.
• 10:11
  Speaker 1: So I think those some of those I don't want
• 10:14
  Speaker 1: to say knocks, but some of those you know elements
• 10:18
  Speaker 1: I believe would would lean towards a Day three selection.
• 10:21
  Speaker 1: But we'll see, this is a really really weak quarterback class,
• 10:25
  Speaker 1: and it would none of a lot of a lot
• 10:29
  Speaker 1: of the you know, a lot of the quarterbacks coming
• 10:31
  Speaker 1: off the board a little bit earlier than anticipated wouldn't
• 10:33
  Speaker 1: surprise me. But Peyton will enter the league with a
• 10:36
  Speaker 1: minimal sample size and he is fairly raw, but there
• 10:39
  Speaker 1: are tools there that are worth developing. I think the
• 10:43
  Speaker 1: Eagles add to the quarterback factory and that the factory.
• 10:46
  Speaker 2: Turns on and they add another arm.
• 10:48
  Speaker 1: But they do have a lot of other needs, so
• 10:51
  Speaker 1: that might be something that some may raise their eyebrow.
• 10:53
  Speaker 1: But when you look back on the Eagles recent history
• 10:55
  Speaker 1: in the draft, they haven't been shy when it comes
• 10:59
  Speaker 1: to adding to the quarterback room.
• 11:01
  Speaker 2: And that's not an indictment on anyone.
• 11:03
  Speaker 1: It's how much they value that position that should be
• 11:06
  Speaker 1: the real talking point.
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  Speaker 1: Safe, closing things out. Round six, Pick number one ninety seven,
• 13:32
  Speaker 1: Andre Fuller, cornerback, Toledo. The Eagles signed cornerbacks Rake One
• 13:37
  Speaker 1: and Jonathan Jones in free agency. I understand that, and
• 13:40
  Speaker 1: the roster has an abundance of holdovers expected to contend
• 13:43
  Speaker 1: for depth brols. I'm looking at Keeley Ringo, Jacory and
• 13:47
  Speaker 1: Bennett mac McWilliams. Brandon Johnson's there, he's a second year player.
• 13:52
  Speaker 1: But at the NFL scouting combine, I should say this because.
• 13:59
  Speaker 2: Even though there's a lot of names.
• 14:02
  Speaker 1: That doesn't necessarily indicate depth, And as we say here
• 14:04
  Speaker 1: on Inside the Birds, depth is not about the number
• 14:07
  Speaker 1: of players that you have in one position.
• 14:09
  Speaker 2: It's about the quality of.
• 14:09
  Speaker 1: Those players and what's one more to add to the
• 14:13
  Speaker 1: mix to really drive home the spirit of competition and
• 14:19
  Speaker 1: Fuller at the NFL Scouting Combine made mention of Quinya
• 14:22
  Speaker 1: Mitchell's influence and shaping his game and preparing for what's ahead,
• 14:27
  Speaker 1: and last season he had twenty nine tackles, two and
• 14:30
  Speaker 1: a half for loss, eleven passes defended, an interception, and
• 14:33
  Speaker 1: a fumber recovery last year for the Rockets and Fuller
• 14:37
  Speaker 1: sports a prototypical frame for the perimeter is six foot
• 14:40
  Speaker 1: one two hundred pounds, like the size that Hulking frame.
• 14:44
  Speaker 1: They were able to accomplish that by adding a Rikwoee
• 14:48
  Speaker 1: that certainly wasn't the driving force, but there behind the signing.
• 14:52
  Speaker 1: But he does have plenty of length to him and
• 14:55
  Speaker 1: that kind of leads to them being able to bully
• 14:59
  Speaker 1: wider at the line of scrimmage.
• 15:01
  Speaker 2: And that's really the way that Andre Foller plays.
• 15:06
  Speaker 1: He plays with a physical edge and he has demonstrated
• 15:08
  Speaker 1: a habit of competing through the catch, which I think
• 15:12
  Speaker 1: Joe Casper, Eagles defensive backs coach, Roy Anderson, the cornerbacks coach.
• 15:17
  Speaker 2: And Vic Vangil.
• 15:19
  Speaker 1: I think that those are things that are that will
• 15:21
  Speaker 1: probably really really endear I guess I think that's how
• 15:29
  Speaker 1: Andre four can really endear himself to this staff because
• 15:32
  Speaker 1: of the physical way that.
• 15:33
  Speaker 2: He plays the game and he's not afraid to get
• 15:36
  Speaker 2: after it.
• 15:37
  Speaker 1: I think that there's areas of his game that need refinement,
• 15:39
  Speaker 1: but that's fine because that's a late Day three pick,
• 15:43
  Speaker 1: you know.
• 15:44
  Speaker 2: I look at ball tracking.
• 15:45
  Speaker 1: Tackling has been spotty, but it typically is for corners.
• 15:49
  Speaker 1: He gets a little handsy sometimes, but this is a
• 15:52
  Speaker 1: round six dart throw a player who has familiarity with
• 15:56
  Speaker 1: Quinnon Mitchell, and I believe that if you get him
• 16:00
  Speaker 1: to the pro level, and this is certainly not a
• 16:01
  Speaker 1: knock at Toledo because they've done a remarkable job of
• 16:05
  Speaker 1: churning out corners, but you get someone like that to
• 16:07
  Speaker 1: the NFL level, and they're able to kind of take
• 16:10
  Speaker 1: their career from where it is and right now and
• 16:13
  Speaker 1: move it a little bit further.
• 16:15
  Speaker 2: And that's what their job is going to be. And
• 16:18
  Speaker 2: I like his game.
• 16:19
  Speaker 1: I think I think I've sort of illustrated why, and
• 16:24
  Speaker 1: he does represent late round upside who could challenge for
• 16:28
  Speaker 1: a depth position. I'm sure my opinions here will change
• 16:33
  Speaker 1: and my thought process, especially as I gather more information.
• 16:37
  Speaker 2: In the coming weeks.
• 16:38
  Speaker 1: I will do one more mock draft before Jeff Adam
• 16:42
  Speaker 1: and I do our annual roundtable first round mock draft
• 16:47
  Speaker 1: where we do it for all thirty two teams. And yeah,
• 16:51
  Speaker 1: the draft is the draft is nearing close, guys. I
• 16:54
  Speaker 1: mean it's drawing near, I should say, and it's an
• 16:59
  Speaker 1: exciting time. Baseball is back. We'll see what happens with
• 17:03
  Speaker 1: the Sixers and the Flyers. But you can feel the
• 17:05
  Speaker 1: energy around the city and there's never a shortage of
• 17:09
  Speaker 1: topics to discuss when you cover the Philadelphia Eagles, So
• 17:12
  Speaker 1: make sure you keep it plugged in on Inside the Birds,
• 17:15
  Speaker 1: on Inside the Birds dot Com, and of course right
• 17:18
  Speaker 1: here on the Checkodaily. That's gonna do it for this
• 17:21
  Speaker 1: episode of The Checko Daily, I'm Andrew de Checo, and
• 17:25
  Speaker 1: I'll catch you all on the next one.