Seth Vigdor
One of the glaring weaknesses in the Eagles’ drafts in the Chip Kelly era was the lack of their ability to draft offensive lineman. I want to play therapist with you guys/gals right now for a moment if you don’t mind. We’re going to reminisce for a bit. Close your eyes. I want you to think back to the days of Andy Reid in Philadelphia. Think back to draft day and how excited you were at the thought of the Eagles finally drafting a big-time wide receiver that would hopefully put us over the hump and win us a Super Bowl.
Keep your eyes closed. Now, I want you to imagine the commissioner walking to the podium with the Eagles’ envelope to announce our pick (if we weren’t trading it away). Think about the excitement that was running through your blood. Then the moment arrives “With the number (insert pick number) pick of the draft, the Philadelphia Eagles have selected…” And then boom there it is! It’s announced that the Birds have just selected an offensive lineman. We then look around the room wherever we are in disbelief, disappointment and disgust. Open your eyes now.
I’m sorry that I had to do that to you. With all of that being said, the Eagles could be returning to those days and that doesn’t have to be a bad thing. If you think back the Andy Reid years, the offensive line was rarely ever a problem for us. New head coach Doug Pederson has studied under Andy Reid for years and I expect him to follow Reid’s footsteps in certain areas on and off the field, with a strong offensive line mentality being one of them.
Let’s take a look at some of the clues that seem to be right in front of our faces. Eagles reporter for the Inquirer Zach Berman mentioned the Howie Roseman statement from just last week that could give us insight into perhaps the Eagles’ thinking this year. Here’s what Roseman had to say courtesy of Berman and Philly.com.
“We were leading the league in offensive linemen drafted from, I think, 2000 to 2013. As we get in here and look at all the prospects, it’s an important priority for us.”
From the sounds of that, it appears we weren’t the only ones going down memory lane recently. Berman continued to detail some of the signs pointing to offensive lineman love from the Eagles.
“NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock said the Eagles “can’t draft enough offensive linemen.” Coach Doug Pederson admitted “there are some holes” on the line. Guards were a particular problem last season. Pederson suggested the Eagles could look to free agency for help, which would provide an immediate solution. But the draft will nonetheless supply depth, if not a Day 1 starter. “This is a good offensive line draft,” Pederson said. “So I think we should be able to get some guys who can come in and help the ones that are there and make it a better offensive line. Get more production there.” At No. 13 in the first round, the Eagles are in position to select an offensive lineman who could start right away.”
I fully expect the Birds to go with an offensive lineman with their first pick in this year’s draft. As long as they grab the right one, I’m okay with it. We definitely need to address drafting a quarterback as well, but with the recent news that the Eagles are reportedly listening to offers for running back DeMarco Murray, my immediate thought is that we need to get back to the days of having a stud offensive line. We need to make certain that we protect whatever quarterback we have. So when the commissioner comes to the podium again for our first pick in the draft, please don’t fake yourself out. I think we’re drafting O-Line with our first pick.