Birds open to anything in draft
PHILADELPHIA » This year, Howie Roseman didn’t say anything at the Eagles’ pre-draft availability about folks in the draft room high-fiving and being excited about the team’s first pick.
It’s not nearly as easy to make such a claim coming off a Super Bowl title and owning the last, or 32nd pick in the money round, than it was last year when they took pass rusher Derek Barnett with the 14th selection.
With five, and possibly six quarterbacks coming off the board in the first round of the lottery next Thursday, the Eagles are poised to offer No. 32 to a team desperate to reach for a talent that slips to the bottom of the first round.
The situation plays out every year.
It doesn’t sound aggressive, the act of trading out of the first day of the draft to have picks for the second day. But the Eagles don’t have any second or third-round picks. Traded them away. And in a few years, they’re going to need the cheaper contracts afforded them by draft picks to fill out a team in which Carson Wentz is going to make $30 million a season.
“We’re open for business,” football operations chief Howie Roseman said. “We’re open for business in every round. If we think it’s something that makes sense for our team, we’re going to do it. But at the same time, like Joe (Douglas) said, we’re ready to pick. We’ve got 32 guys that we feel really, good about. We can’t operate under the assumption that we’re going to bail out. So, we’re ready to roll.”
The first round of the draft last year featured 10 trades. The Chicago Bears, the Kansas City Chiefs and the Houston Texans all traded up the board to select quarterbacks.
But even the end of the first round was busy.
The Seattle Seahawks dealt the 26th pick to the Atlanta Falcons for the 31st pick, the 95th pick (third round) and No. 249 overall. The Falcons had to get defensive end Takkarist McKinley.
The Green Bay Packers traded the No. 29 pick to the Cleveland Browns for No. 33 and No. 108, the latter, the first pick on the third and final day of the draft.
The Seahawks then shipped the 31st pick to the San Francisco 49ers for Nos. 34 and 111, the latter the fourth pick on the last day of the draft.
All good draft capital, according to Eagles player personnel chief Joe Douglas, who has done the math.
“We’re excited that we have five picks on Saturday as it stands right now,” Douglas said. “When you look at the Super Bowl, there was 22 starters that were third-round picks or lower. And of those 22, 18 of them were fourth round picks or lower. Including six that were undrafted free agents. So, we choose to keep the glass half full.”
One of those late-round picks was Tom Brady, a sixth-rounder out of Michigan. But the Eagles have their franchise quarterback in Wentz, elite skills players in Alshon Jeffery and Zach Ertz, and depth on the defensive line.
Right now the Eagles have two fourth-round picks and one pick in the fifth, sixth and seventh rounds. Fresh off a championship, they have the luxury of looking at their roster in a big picture fashion.
“We have been having those conversations about what the roster looks like in ’19 and ’20,” Roseman said. “Obviously with our draft pick situation this year, we’re seeing how we can maybe increase that total and number amount in the years to come and try to keep as many people as we can, as well.”
Which brings us back to the quarterback prospects. Draft one in the first round and you at least have a fifth-year option on him. After that, rookie draft picks get four-year contracts.
“When (you) look at the (contract) numbers based on what the option year is projected to be, there are some incredible values by having the fifth year of the deal,” Roseman said. “I think that’s why you see teams that are jumping from the second to the first round because everyone is aware of those discussions. The same discussions are happening when you’re talking about jumping into the top 10 versus picking 11, and the fifth-year option on that. I think that’s why we see all these trades happen not only at the top of the draft but when you’re getting into that later range. Teams want to jump in and make sure they have their guy locked under contract.”
Open for business. You can’t make it much clearer than the Eagles have. Unless, that is, a guy they like starts falling.
There’s been speculation the Eagles adore running back Derrius Guice (5-10, 224), the threedown prospect out of LSU who ran a 4.49 in the 40yard dash at the scouting combine. They’ve made the trek to Louisiana, where Doug Pederson resided.
Douglas didn’t address Guice directly. Instead he spoke about David Johnson, Kareem Hunt and Alvin Kamara, talented backs who weren’t first or second-round picks.
“Great running backs are difference makers,” Douglas said. “We see that in today’s NFL - special guys that can come out of the backfield and hurt you in the pass game. I don’t think we’re opposed to taking running backs at any point.”