The Eagles’ ideal first-round scenario, players worth trading up for, and more highlights from our NFL draft AMA

The 2023 NFL draft is right around the corner, and Eagles fans — and football fans in general — have no shortage of questions about how the first round is going to play out on Thursday night in Kansas City.

Normally, a team coming off a Super Bowl berth would have substantially less interest in a draft, because the 31st or 32nd pick isn’t as interesting as one in the top-half of the first round. But thanks to general manager Howie Roseman’s wheeling and dealing last spring, the Eagles actually have the 10th overall pick — to go along with the 30th pick, giving them a pair of first-round selections.

The Eagles, despite their success last season still have numerous holes to fill — and doing so through the draft just became much more important after making Jalen Hurts the highest-paid player in the league — for this coming season and beyond, when they could lose the likes of Jason Kelce and others.

Ahead of Thursday’s first-round, a pair of Inquirer football writers, Eagles beat reporter Josh Tolentino and draft specialist Devin Jackson, took to Reddit, where they invited users on the r/eagles subreddit to ask them anything about the Eagles. Most of the questions had to do with the draft, but there were also questions on new defensive coordinator Sean Desai and the Birds’ chances of returning to the Super Bowl in 2024.

Here are a few of their answers. You can read the full thread here.

Devin Jackson: Defensively, there’s a few players who fit what the Eagles could do: Jalen Carter is at the top of the list, but his teammate, Nolan Smith, can be a weakside EDGE opposite of Hasson Reddick. Smith did an excellent job in college of setting an edge and rushing the quarterback as a standup outside linebacker, and while the Eagles have Josh Sweat and others at edge, Smith is a high upside player who plays much bigger than his size suggests.

Offensively, Paris Johnson Jr. and Cody Mauch are two ideal players that can play guard and kick out to tackle when Lane Johnson retires or either tackle misses any period of time with injury. Johnson played right guard in 2021 before kicking out to left tackle, while Mauch was mostly a left tackle, but played all over the offensive line at the Senior Bowl and has the run blocking demeanor and finishing ability to hang in the interior of the line. His average arm length makes him a better candidate to move inside.

Josh Tolentino: Under the assumption that the Eagles feel comfortable regarding his off-field issues, Jalen Carter could be a trade up-candidate. Carter had a poor showing at his pro day, but his college tape doesn’t lie. He’s exactly what the Eagles need at defensive tackle. Pairing him with former college teammates Jordan Davis and Nakobe Dean would also help get him started on the right foot in Philadelphia. With Javon Hargrave gone and Fletcher Cox turning 33 in December, the Eagles would be wise to think about the future of the position. For additional context, the Eagles have traded up in three of the past four drafts.

Devin Jackson: The drafting for need versus best-available player discussion is a tough one to navigate. The Eagles should operate on the best available in terms of who can help their team win in the near future, but as we saw last year, most of their rookies didn’t see significant playing time, so just because you draft a player that high doesn’t mean they fill an immediate ‘need.’ I think the process is take the players you feel most comfortable with and have value positionally.

Jalen Carter is too good to miss if he falls, but it seems unlikely, Another player that could interest the Eagles is Tyree Wilson is he falls to 10, considering he has top five buzz currently.

» READ MORE: Evaluating film of Georgia’s Jalen Carter and how he would fit along the Eagles’ defensive line

Devin Jackson: The dream first round scenario would be to get Jalen Carter with their first pick, whether at 10 or trading up to 7 or 8. He’s a difference maker and off-field issues aside, is the best player in this draft in my opinion.

At pick 30 would be to find a long term answer to be a 4i in the Eagles defense or take a versatile edge rusher, considering the value would be there and how deep this edge class is. A player like Adetomiwa Adebawore would be a nice addition, but pure pass rushers like Will McDonald IV or BJ Ojulari can’t be discounted.

If Carter is gone, the other scenario that could be ideal is taking Paris Johnson Jr. at 10, or Nolan Smith via a trade back from 10, and look at defensive line with the second pick in the first round. Corner is another consideration but taking one Day 2 seems more likely.

» READ MORE: Eagles mock draft: Birds trade up for Jalen Carter, add defensive back depth and speedy receiver

Josh Tolentino: … Let’s quickly decipher through the NFC’s projected starting QBs pre-draft:

Without question, Hurts is a top 3, if not the No. 1 quarterback in the NFC. The conference won’t exactly be a cakewalk — the Eagles have a tough schedule with road games at Kansas City, Seattle, Los Angeles, Tampa Bay, New England and New York Jets. But if the Eagles can secure home-field advantage again throughout the playoffs, it’s difficult imagining any of these quarterbacks mentioned above storming into Lincoln Financial Field, out-dueling Hurts, and departing with a victory.

The Eagles have the pieces in place, specifically on offense, to be extremely dynamic and explosive again. Much of the chatter leading into the season will revolve around new defensive coordinator Sean Desai and the scheme he puts together around new and old faces on D.

Looking for more answers? You can read the full Reddit AMA thread here.