Baldinger: Philadelphia will throw a parade if Eagles draft Bijan Robinson

The Bijan Robinson hype train is picking up steam in Philadelphia, and there’s more fuel being added to the fire.

NFL Insider Brian Baldinger of the Audacy Original Podcast "In The Huddle” talked about how good of a fit Robinson would be on the Eagles and how Philadelphia would react if Howie Roseman drafts the running back.

"When you’re trying to pair up Bijan Robinson and a team that’s needy at running back, you have to start with the Philadelphia Eagles,” Baldinger said (6:45 in player above). "They’re picking number 10. Miles Sanders is gone. Yeah, they brought in a free agent, they got Boston Scott, and they’ve got other players there.

"But Howie Roseman, it doesn’t fit Howie’s profile to draft a running back or a linebacker in the first round. It just doesn’t. But sometimes the talent is just so good.”

Robinson could be just talented enough to make Roseman stray from his normal path. HE ran for 1,580 yards on 258 carries (6.1 yards per attempt) with 18 touchdowns during his final season at Texas.

Eagles fans would certainly enjoy a talented running back landing in Philadelphia.

"If Howie Roseman would take Bijan at number 10 in this draft, I’m just going to tell you South Philadelphia’s going to throw a parade. Forget about waiting for the Super Bowl again, they’re just going to throw a parade right now,” Baldinger said. "Forget about the Phillies and the Flyers and the Sixers, they’re just going to throw a parade on April 27th if Howie drafts Bijan Robinson.”

Granted, Baldinger does have a feeling that Robinson is going to drop, but Roseman could surprise some people by drafting the star running back 10th overall.

https://www.audacy.com/national/sports/baldinger-philly-have-parade-if-eagles-draft-bijan-robinson

I hate parades almost as much as drafting RBs in the first 2 rounds

As good as Bijan looks he's not the only RB in the draft, 10th overall is too high. 

Eagles will end up with one of the Offensive Tackles, not a sexy pick but it's getting time to look at Lanes replacement, this team is built through the lines.

This is probably the first draft in a very long time that I don't have a "man crush" on a player that I really wanted the Eagles to get in the first round (usually via trade up).  This year, with the way our roster is currently constructed combined with the players in this draft and our limited amount of picks, I just haven't developed any first round "must have" guy.  Instead, I have a bunch of guys I'd be okay with drafting at 10.

All that said, Robinson is probably the closest thing to a man-crush player I have this year.  I stop short of viewing him as a must have, but I admit I'd be pretty damn excited if we did draft him.  I'd be ok with it at 10, but my preference would be to trade back a little then pick him.  My logical brain says to not use our first pick on a RB when we can get decent value at that position later, but there's something about this year with this team that screams "add Bijan to this offense".

1 hour ago, EaglesAddict said:

This is probably the first draft in a very long time that I don't have a "man crush" on a player that I really wanted the Eagles to get in the first round (usually via trade up).  This year, with the way our roster is currently constructed combined with the players in this draft and our limited amount of picks, I just haven't developed any first round "must have" guy.  Instead, I have a bunch of guys I'd be okay with drafting at 10.

All that said, Robinson is probably the closest thing to a man-crush player I have this year.  I stop short of viewing him as a must have, but I admit I'd be pretty damn excited if we did draft him.  I'd be ok with it at 10, but my preference would be to trade back a little then pick him.  My logical brain says to not use our first pick on a RB when we can get decent value at that position later, but there's something about this year with this team that screams "add Bijan to this offense".

I agree 100% here. Bijan is an excellent back and receiver out of the slot if they want to use him there. He is a weapon that would really make it difficult to stop this team.

I am usually on the "Don't draft a RB in the first round" bandwagon, but the Eagles drafting Bijan to add to their great O-line, young QB and 2 stud WR just makes so much sense and would be almost unfair to the rest of the league.

5 minutes ago, pallidrone said:

I agree 100% here. Bijan is an excellent back and receiver out of the slot if they want to use him there. He is a weapon that would really make it difficult to stop this team.

I am usually on the "Don't draft a RB in the first round" bandwagon, but the Eagles drafting Bijan to add to their great O-line, young QB and 2 stud WR just makes so much sense and would be almost unfair to the rest of the league.

I can't see using a top 10 pick on a RB but maybe if they traded back.  I could see Washington maybe wanting a QB ... in return for 10 we get 16 and 47.  Draft Robinson at 16 (although still believe we're much more inclined to go in a different direction than RB but to play along here ... ).  I can only imagine the level of angst this board would feel if we then use 47 on a TE like Darnell Washington (meaning we neglect defense with those first 2 picks). 

 

Look he’s the fun and exciting pick. Or at least he’s one of a few that would have that level of excitement on draft night. I don’t think it’s the long term smart move but it would be exciting and I think would be an impact immediate player. But that isn’t the way Howie tends to operate and actually it isn’t what good smart teams do. 

The counter is that we have a really good roster that’s already a contender. A team with an extra first round pick this year and an extra second next year. So they do have a fairly unique position there.

1 hour ago, UK_EaglesFan89 said:

Look he’s the fun and exciting pick. Or at least he’s one of a few that would have that level of excitement on draft night. I don’t think it’s the long term smart move but it would be exciting and I think would be an impact immediate player. But that isn’t the way Howie tends to operate and actually it isn’t what good smart teams do. 

The counter is that we have a really good roster that’s already a contender. A team with an extra first round pick this year and an extra second next year. So they do have a fairly unique position there.

The counter to all that is … we’ve done much worse with some 1st rd picks.  We got absolutely nothing out of Reagor and basically nothing from Dillard, so even if we did use a 1 on Robinson and he gave us 4 (5 if they used the 5th year option) good years, he will have contributed more than many.  

They didn’t just spend $255 million to watch Hurts hand the ball off. I doubt it happens. 

6 hours ago, time2rock said:

The counter to all that is … we’ve done much worse with some 1st rd picks.  We got absolutely nothing out of Reagor and basically nothing from Dillard, so even if we did use a 1 on Robinson and he gave us 4 (5 if they used the 5th year option) good years, he will have contributed more than many.  

Can’t disagree with that buddy! I’m not dead against it but I also wouldn’t love it. I’d be excited but I don’t think it’s necessarily the best use of #10. But hey there will be better players who we end up passing on but there will be a lot of much worse players.

There is no hype train. None.

I actually prefer Gibbs over Robinson for us.. 😄

Eagles will not draft a RB in the first round......how many years will this go on?  They have a stable of very good RBs and go with the RBs by committee.   They have power, elusiveness, and pass catching ability.  The only question is whether Penny can stay relatively healthy in his limited role.

AND the eagles have more important needs.  Maybe a RB in the 4th or 5th if they pick up more picks.

When was the last time an NFL team drafted a RB in round 1 and didn't regret it?  How far back do we have to go?

7 hours ago, eagle45 said:

When was the last time an NFL team drafted a RB in round 1 and didn't regret it?  How far back do we have to go?

The point is, teams don't need to spend a 1st round pick on a RB, which are a dime a dozen.  

7 hours ago, eagle45 said:

When was the last time an NFL team drafted a RB in round 1 and didn't regret it?  How far back do we have to go?

Guess you gotta go back to Saquon Barkley or Christian McAffrey. Not much success with first round RBs in the last 15 years.

12 hours ago, 91defense said:

Guess you gotta go back to Saquon Barkley or Christian McAffrey. Not much success with first round RBs in the last 15 years.

It depends what we mean by regret, lots of 1st round RB's have given decent production, but their teams haven't been great, so do the teams regret the pick, or that they didn't build the trenches? That's impossible to quantify.

Let's be clear Zeke has played fine for Dallas, he got paid too much, but he absolutely lived up to his pick in terms of personal production, Barkley will put up 1500 all purpose yards when he's healthy, that's been his issue, McCaffrey and Jacobs have both produced at high levels, Najee Harris has put up consecutive 1000 yards seasons since being taken in the first. Todd Gurley averaged 1000yds and 11TD's a season before an arthritic knee condition finished his career. the problem with 1st round RB's is more often than not injury or whether to extend, rather than production.

I think the issue is most Running Backs are taken high by teams who need more than a tail back to make them competitive, we'd be adding Robinson to an already loaded offense that almost went all the way without him.

On 4/17/2023 at 7:00 PM, time2rock said:

The counter to all that is … we’ve done much worse with some 1st rd picks.  We got absolutely nothing out of Reagor and basically nothing from Dillard, so even if we did use a 1 on Robinson and he gave us 4 (5 if they used the 5th year option) good years, he will have contributed more than many.  

I think the same way.  It really depends on what players are available at pick 10 and whether we have a partner to trade back with if we didn't like who was there.  We can debate the worthiness of the RB position being selected that high but we can also debate the possibility of what player is the best available at that pick (least likely to be a bust, etc).

4 hours ago, Cochis_Calhoun said:

It depends what we mean by regret, lots of 1st round RB's have given decent production, but their teams haven't been great, so do the teams regret the pick, or that they didn't build the trenches? That's impossible to quantify.

Let's be clear Zeke has played fine for Dallas, he got paid too much, but he absolutely lived up to his pick in terms of personal production, Barkley will put up 1500 all purpose yards when he's healthy, that's been his issue, McCaffrey and Jacobs have both produced at high levels, Najee Harris has put up consecutive 1000 yards seasons since being taken in the first. Todd Gurley averaged 1000yds and 11TD's a season before an arthritic knee condition finished his career. the problem with 1st round RB's is more often than not injury or whether to extend, rather than production.

I think the issue is most Running Backs are taken high by teams who need more than a tail back to make them competitive, we'd be adding Robinson to an already loaded offense that almost went all the way without him.

Exactly right. Bijan could be the right move in the short-term and it could pay off huge, but I don't like the long-term outlook of using a top 10 pick on any running back.

I want nothing to do with an RB in the 1st round. They can be had and found everywhere.

Build this Team in the trenches. 

It’s like a house. Put in the foundation first, then build the house, and THEN add the pretty stuff, like a swimming pool, two car garage out back, a basketball ball court. Or something like that. 😄

On 4/17/2023 at 10:12 PM, Road to Victory said:

They didn’t just spend $255 million to watch Hurts hand the ball off. I doubt it happens. 

A good RB might make your $255 million investment a little safer.  Jalen would no longer be the best running back in the backfield and can take some (or a lot) of the running duties off his hands.