Not everyone is sold on Eagles first-round pick Lane Johnson. One scout says the Oklahoma offensive tackle is “not ready for prime time.”
Blog Archives
Eagles Wake-Up Call: Gamble’s Input ‘Really Valuable’
Chip Kelly wasn’t the only new face in the draft room for the Eagles this year.
In mid-February, the team brought Tom Gamble in as vice president of player personnel.
Asked about Gamble’s input, Kelly said, “It was really valuable. I knew Tommy from when he was with the 49ers because he was on our campus all the time at Oregon.”
On the Lane Johnson/Danny Watkins Comparison
Eagles fans never forget.
Just last week, during ESPN’s 30 for 30, Elway To Marino, a reader Tweeted me, saying he threw his remote across the room when footage was shown of the Eagles selecting running back Michael Haddix with the No. 8 pick in 1983. A graphic scrolled across the screen during the film, explaining that Haddix had the lowest yards-per-carry average (3.0) in the history of the NFL.
To make matters worse, of the 20 players selected after Haddix in the first round that year, four went on to have Hall of Fame careers: Bruce Matthews, Jim Kelly, Dan Marino and Darrell Green.
So when the Eagles used the No. 4 pick last week on Lane Johnson, some fans couldn’t help but take a stroll down memory lane and ask: Did the Birds just take another Danny Watkins?
No-22: What Zach Ertz Brings To the Eagles
Many of you have asked for All-22 breakdowns of the Eagles’ draft picks.
Unfortunately, the coaches’ tape is not available to the media or the public. So instead, we’ll use the TV footage from the great cut-ups that the fine folks of DraftBreakdown.com put together.
We’ll start with second-round pick Zach Ertz. I watched three of his games – against Cal, Notre Dame and Oregon. Below is what I saw.
Earl Wolff And the Eagles’ Safety Picture
Howie Roseman was high on this safety class heading in, and admitted afterwards that “there were a lot of safeties that we wanted in this draft.”
Despite the temptations the Eagles stayed disciplined and watched while 12 safeties came off the board (Kenny Vaccaro, Eric Reid, Matt Elam, John Cyprien, D.J. Swearinger, T.J. McDonald, J.J. Wilcox, Shawn Williams, Duron Harmon, Duke Williams, Shamarko Thomas and Phillip Thomas) and were content to walk away with the 5-11, 209-pound Earl Wolff, whom they selected in the fifth round with the 136th overall pick.
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Sheil
Follow @SheilKapadia Email SheilSheil Kapadia has been writing about the Eagles since 2008. His previous Philly.com blog, Moving the Chains, was named one of the best in the state by the Associated Press. Sheil's main joys in life are family, football and finding good parking spots.
Tim
Follow @Tim_McManus Email TimTim McManus is a bulldog reporter with a nose for news and story angles that will get people talking. He'll talk about it himself on 97.5 The Fanatic, where he serves as a host and Eagles beat reporter. Tim, an award-winning journalist, will be with the team around the clock.
