Eagles drop to third round, get help on O-line and at safety

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Eagles drop to third round, get help on O-line and at safety

Tyler Steen, Sydney Brown go to Birds

 

PHILADELPHIA — On a slow second day of the draft Friday, the Eagles traded out of the second round and into the second and third picks of the third round.

There they selected offensive tackle Tyler Steen of Alabama and safety Sydney Brown of Illinois back-to-back.

Steen (6-6, 321) has guard versatility while Brown (5-10, 211), with six interceptions, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery was the Big 10 Defensive Player of the Year last season.

Steen also is the son of an American hero. His late grandfather, Rodney M. Davis, was posthumously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for jumping on a grenade to save Marines in the Vietnam War. Steen grew up a military brat, his father Daris having played football at LSU before joining the Marines.

"My grandfather is an inspiration,” Steen said on a video call. "He’s selfless. Knowing abiout that when i grew up obviously had an impact on my life.”

Steen earned the left tackle job early on at Alabama after transferring from Vanderbilt. He plays with heavy hands and a powerful punch. With 32.3-inch arms, he may be more suited to guard with the Eagles.

"We feel like he can play both positions,” Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni said. "We’ll work with him and see what happens next week at rookie minicamp.”

Brown is the Eagles’ highest-drafted safety since they took Jai Jarrett of Temple off the board in 2001 with the 54th overall pick.

Brown started 50 of 51 games, recorded 10 career picks, 26 passes, 2.0, 4.0 forced fumbles and clocked a 4.47 at the combine. Brown also has a 40.5-inch vertical leap.

Brown projects as a component in sub-packages and on special teams, as his size is less than ideal to take on tight ends and big receivers.

"We still need safeties,” Eagles general manager Howie Roseman said. "When you look at Sydney, the way he used him at Illinois, they used him a lot around the box. He would blitz, he would cover the tight end and he would play in the run game. So, you kind of had an incomplete evaluation. In the Senior Bowl … they gave us an opportunity to see him play in the deep half, play in one-and-ones. And you saw the athleticism. Sydney Brown was a passionate player for a lot of people in this organization. He was a red star guy, a tremendous person with really good athletic tools and obviously leadership skills.”

Still on the board when the Eagles made those picks were Georgia cornerback Kelee Ringo, who is highly rate and Ohio State offensive tackle Dawand Jones (6-8, 347). Jones is a natural right tackle.

The Eagles have two picks remaining Saturday, Nos. 219 and 248, both in the seventh round.

It’s early but Sirianni couldn’t contain his enthusiasm over the future for Steen, who has an ally of sorts in offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland, who coached at Alabama.

Sirianni was asked if Steen could compete for the job at right guard that opened when Isaac Seumalo exited in free agency.

"That’s really a long way away,” Sirianni said. "The best person will play at that position. We feel like we have some good options. But, hey, the reason we took him is we feel good about him. Everybody in the building feels good about him. So, yeah, it’s too early to say that but the best player will play.”

https://www.delcotimes.com/2023/04/28/eagles-drop-to-third-round-get-help-on-o-line-and-at-safety/