2014 Draft Needs: Philadelphia Eagles
Dec 22, 2013; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Eagles safety Patrick Chung (23) celebrates with safety Nate Allen (29) during the second quarter at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports
Heading into the 2013 NFL season, most Eagles fans had geared up for a lack luster season, which would end with a high draft stock and with potentially the “quarterback of the future” waiting for them come May. To the surprise of most, the Philadelphia Eagles have played well enough to be in a position to claim the NFC East this Sunday. Not only have the Eagles played well, it looks like the Eagles have found their quarterback. With Nick Foles looking like a franchise quarterback, the Eagles can shift their draft focus and begin to repair a weak secondary and add to their offensive depth. Here are three positions the Philadelphia Eagles will hone in on in the NFL Draft to help improve their roster going forward.
Safety: While the Eagles defense has gotten better and better over the last 6 weeks, the Eagles secondary still resembles swiss cheese. At the moment, the Eagles defense has survived by causing turnovers, but moving forward, the team will not be able to make real noise in the playoffs with a bend, but don’t break defense. While Earl Wolff has played well and, over the Eagles winning streak, Nate Allen looked good as well, the Eagles will look to upgrade at this position to help solidify their secondary. While it looks like the top safety, HaSean Clinton-Dix (Alabama), won’t be available for the Eagles to take, barring a trade, the Eagles will have a few options, such as Deone Bucannon (Washington St) and Dion Bailey (USC), in the later rounds.
Corner: I just want to start out by saying, while Cary Williams and Bradley Fletcher may not be the best corners around, they
Oct 5, 2013; Gainesville, FL, USA; Florida Gators defensive back Loucheiz Purifoy (15) reacts during the first half of the game against the Arkansas Razorbacks at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rob Foldy-USA TODAY Sports
are such a relief for Eagles fans because at least they can tackle and they don’t give up the big play every other down, unlike their predecessors. Now back to business. While Fletcher and Williams have had their shinning moments this season, neither has played well enough to secure a job for next season. The only Eagles corner who has secured a job for next year is Brandon Boykin. Luckily for the Eagles, while there isn’t a corner worth a top-10 pick, their are a lot late first and second round corners in this draft. Whether its Bradley Roby (Ohio St), one of the Florida corners (Roberson and Purifoy), or even Ifo Ekpre-Olomu (Oregon) the Eagles should have plenty of options on day 2 as they continue to rebuild their secondary.
Wide Receiver: While this is the third need on my list, it wouldn’t surprise me to see the Eagles take a wide receiver in the first round, due to the depth at the other two positions. With the uncertainty surrounding Jeremy Maclin, the Eagles could look to fill his void through the draft. While some Eagles fans believe that DeSean Jackson and Riley Cooper are good enough, and they have certainly proved that they can get the job done, Peyton Manning and the Broncos showed the NFL that you can’t have too many weapons. While Sammy Watkins (Clemson) will most certainly be off the board by the Eagles pick, the Eagles could look at players like Allen Robinson (Penn St) or Kelvin Benjamin (Florida St), both big bodied receivers who could step in and be a really nice fit in the Eagles already dynamic offense.