Draft Day Trade

Eagles trade 23rd overall pick and 68th overall pick to the Jets for the 16th overall pick - The Jets move down in the 1st round, acquiring a 3rd round pick, while still giving them an opportunity to draft Ty Simpson without reaching for him at 16. While I previously mocked the Eagles staying put at 23, the trend in recent drafts under Howie lately (with the exception of 2024 and Quinyon Mitchell) has been the Eagles trading up for their guy, so it would not be surprising to see it happen again this year.

1st round (16th overall): Monroe Freeling OT Georgia - Freeling has a physical profile that compares favorably to Lane Johnson, although he is not quite as fast, he still checks off several of the other boxes for athleticism given his hand size, arm length, vertical and broad jump numbers. Howie drafts yet again another Georgia Bulldog to help the squad, this time on offense, as the future starter at RT.

2nd round (54th overall): Treydan Stukes S Arizona - Stukes was one of the prospects the Eagles brought in for a top 30 visit and brings positional versatility to play both safety and nickel back. He possesses top level athleticism (4.33 40-yard dash), intangibles (team captain) and playmaking ability (4 INTs last season for Arizona). The knock on him is that he’s an older prospect as a sixth year senior and had an ACL tear in 2024. Stukes should be able to push for a starting spot at safety as a rookie.

3rd round (98th overall): Max Klare TE Ohio State - Klare was underutilized in Ohio State’s offense after transferring from Purdue, but has the physical tools to be the future TE1 and heir apparent to Dallas Goedert. He is passable as a run blocker, but needs to improve on this aspect to transition from a receiving TE to an every down TE.

4th round (114th overall): Romello Height DE Texas Tech - Height met with the Eagles as a top 30 visit and is an undersized prospect at 6’3 and 240 lbs who was productive this past season with Texas Tech, garnering 10 sacks; he can contribute in the rotation as a situational pass rusher as a rookie

4th round (137th overall): Jeff Caldwell WR Cincinnati - Caldwell met with the Eagles at the Combine and has intriguing size at 6’5 and 215 lbs, while running a 4.31 40-yard dash at the Combine. He is a developmental prospect that still needs work on route running, but has a lot of upside as an outside WR if he puts it all together.

5th round (178th overall): Ar’maj Reed-Adams OG Texas A&M - Reed-Adams is a three year starter with experience at both guard positions as well as right tackle, with the potential to be a valuable depth piece on the OL. He also met with the Eagles at the Combine.

6th round (197th overall): Behren Morton QB Texas Tech -  Another prospect to add to the QB factory with Tanner McKee on the last year of his deal and Andy Dalton at the tail end of his career. Morton is an experienced QB with arm talent but has a significant injury history. Of note, the Eagles met with Morton at the Combine and he’s the 9th ranked QB prospect on Todd McShay’s list.

Post-Draft Trades

Eagles trade WR A.J. Brown to the Chargers for a 2027 1st round pick and WR Quentin Johnston - With all the chatter surrounding the Patriots being the front runner to trade for A.J. Brown, Howie instead finds a package that helps the team both this year and in the future. At 6’3, Johnston has been a solid red-zone weapon for the Chargers, netting 8 TDs in two consecutive seasons. While concentration drops are an issue, Johnston is only 24 and still is on his rookie deal as a former 1st round pick. Johnston’s name had been floated in trade rumors, with the Chargers GM Joe Hortiz making comments that he’s not available for trade, but with a potential upgrade available to help Justin Herbert take the next leap, Hortiz changes his tune here.

Eagles trade QB Tanner McKee and a 2027 3rd round pick to the Cardinals for DE Josh Sweat - There have been rumors of Josh Sweat wanting out after Jonathan Gannon was let go as the Cardinals head coach. A reunion makes sense from the Eagles standpoint given his prior success with the team and the need for an edge rusher. From the Cardinals standpoint, trading Sweat before June 1 would incur a 22 million cap hit, but a post-June 1st trade would be only a 5.5 million cap hit with 10.8 million cap savings. After missing out on Ty Simpson, the Cardinals take a chance on Tanner McKee as their potential QB of the future.

Awesome and realistic draft! 👊🏼

Not sure Freeling is worth trading up for, but would be a good pick.

Love the AJ trade. Gives us a WR2 in return as well.

I don’t see it with Sweat, simply because we didn’t pay him once and we have other priorities on D to pay so don’t see us taking on that contract.

10 hours ago, ManchesterEagle said:

Not sure Freeling is worth trading up for, but would be a good pick.

Love the AJ trade. Gives us a WR2 in return as well.

I don’t see it with Sweat, simply because we didn’t pay him once and we have other priorities on D to pay so don’t see us taking on that contract.

I was torn about the cost of moving up also, but it is something I can see Howie doing on draft day.

Reasonable thought, but on the flip side the team is rumored to be after Jonathan Greenard, who will be looking for a new deal also, so I'm not sure the contract will be as much of a deterrent.