Eagles mock draft roundup: Whom do the experts have the Birds selecting after trading back to 12? | Early Birds

Good morning, Eagles fans. Miss us? I come with good news today: We’re less than a month away from the start of the NFL draft. Now that most of the top free agents have signed and the first few blockbuster draft trades have been agreed upon, draft buzz is starting to gain momentum. Of course, the Eagles were involved in the first significant draft trade of the offseason, getting a first-rounder next year in exchange for moving back six spots in next month’s draft.

With the Eagles drafting at 12 instead of six, whom will they be targeting?

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— EJ Smith (earlybirds@inquirer.com)

I’d like to offer a belated apology to thosewho were staying up late at night watching Ja’Marr Chase or Kyle Pitts highlights. Nothing is impossible on draft night, but it’s probably best to pull up a different group of players on your next YouTube search.

Here’s whom the experts have the Eagles taking with the 12th pick:

Lance Zierlein, NFL.com: Jaylen Waddle, WR, Alabama

“Moving back and grabbing Jalen Hurts' former Alabama teammate is a strong play. Waddle can help open up the offense and threaten with yards-after-catch throws underneath.” — Zierlein

Plenty of Eagles fans watched Waddle’s teammate DeVonta Smith dominate college football last season, but there’s good reason to believe Waddle will go off the board first. As incredible as Smith was last year, he’s a more complicated projection to the league because of his 6-foot-1, 170-pound frame. Waddle’s got elite speed and a more conventional build at 5-10, 180 pounds.

It’s never a good idea to compare a draft prospect to an All-Pro, but that hasn’t stopped some from invoking Tyreek Hill’s name when discussing Waddle. The Eagles drafted Jalen Reagor last season and Waddle has a similar stature and fit in an offense, but the team needs to add difference-making players any way it can, so Waddle makes sense.

Austin Gayle, Pro Football Focus: Jaycee Horn, CB, South Carolina

“Horn’s combination of athleticism and physicality is rare for the cornerback position. He allowed just eight catches on 24 targets for 116 yards in the seven games he played in 2020.” — Gayle

Horn’s stock is rising quickly through the draft process partly because of an impressive Pro Day and partly because Virginia Tech corner prospect Caleb Farley just had back surgery. Horn is the son of four-time Pro Bowl receiver Joe Horn and does well in press-man coverage as well as zone. At South Carolina’s Pro Day, Jaycee Horn ran a 4.39 second 40-yard dash and measured in at just under 6-foot-1 and at 205 pounds. He’s physical, sometimes to a fault, at the line of scrimmage and has the athleticism to cover down the field.

In new defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon’s zone-heavy, split-safety scheme, Horn could step in as an immediate starter, although there’s some concern his habit of panicking and grabbing receivers will steepen his learning curve early on. If Horn can clean up his technique, though, his upside is quite high as a No. 1 cornerback.

Alabama corner Patrick Surtain could also be an option depending on how the board shakes out. Surtain is considered a more polished, technically sound prospect than Horn, although some have questioned whether he’ll have the recovery speed to be a true No. 1 corner in the league. In the Eagles’ split-safety look, he’s also a solid fit, because top-end speed is less important.

Drae Harris, The Draft Network: Jaylen Waddle

“Philadelphia considers a quarterback with this pick. Ultimately they decide to add more weapons to further the development of Jalen Hurts. They select Hurts’ former teammate, Jaylen Waddle. Waddle brings the type of dynamic threat Philadelphia has not seen since DeSean Jackson was healthy.” — Harris

Pete Prisco, CBS Sports: DeVonta Smith, WR, Alabama

“They have to get better in the passing game and Smith would help do that. Jalen Hurts looks like he’s their quarterback, so why not get him some help?” — Prisco

Whether you believe in Smith’s ceiling in the NFL is almost solely based on how much you care about his size. It’s fair to point out, as USA Today did last week, there has never been a receiver as skinny as Smith taken in the first round of the draft. Ted Ginn was the last first-round receiver to weigh in at less than 180 pounds, and he was two inches shorter than Smith.

Smith could grow into his body more, but he just spent four years in a weight room around the size of an airport with one of the best strength and conditioning programs in the country. If you’re drafting him, you’re betting on his being able to use his route-running ability and ball skills to overcome his size as he did in the SEC last year. If the Eagles believe in that, he’d be the most ideal fit in their offense relative to the rest of the top receivers available.

Has there been any news about looking at OL at 12? WR, CB, etc getting the most attention, but there’s a chance someone like Rashawn Slater will be there for us? — from Ray (@NFL_neerray) on Twitter

Good question, Ray. You can never discount the possibility of Howie Roseman going with an offensive or even defensive lineman early in the draft. If Slater falls to 12, I wouldn’t rule it out, but the Eagles’ needs are much more glaring elsewhere. It’s much easier to project them drafting a cornerback who could start opposite Darius Slay or taking a wide receiver to add another weapon to a depleted set of offensive skill players. The fit with Slater is a little more murky, unless you plan to use him as a depth piece for his first year similar to Andre Dillard.

It’s worth noting this is a deep offensive-line class with plenty of great options available on Days 2 and 3. If the Eagles do indeed go with a skill position in the first round, they could still get an impact player on the interior offensive line such as Landon Dickerson or Creed Humphrey. If they’re looking at tackles, there are plenty who are projected for the late first round or early second, such as Brady Christensen and Liam Eichenberg.