Three "Irishmen" The Eagles Should Target In The NFL Draft

In the spirit of St. Patrick’s day, let’s take a look at three players from Notre Dame who the Philadelphia Eagles could should draft in the 2016 NFL Draft.

Howie Roseman traded cornerback Byron Maxwell, linebacker Kiko Alonso, their crappy contracts, and the 13th overall pick to the Miami Dolphins for the 8th overall pick. That puts the Eagles in prime position to pick a blue chip prospect moving forward. The media around Philly is buzzing with who it could be, will they take shutdown cornerback Vernon Hargreaves III from Florida? Could it be Ezekiel Elliot, the workhorse running back from Ohio State? Or will they use the pick to trade above the 49ers to take a future franchise quarterback in Jared Goff or Carson Wentz? The theories are out there and they are a dime a dozen. In my heart of hearts, I firmly believe that there is one answer here: a future pro bowl tackle and eventual replacement of Jason Peters, Ronnie Stanley from Notre Dame.

Stanley is an absolute beast of a player and he adds depth and a lot of talent to a line corps that went from one of the best in the league to one of the worst due to the negligence of Chip Kelly. If Ronnie Stanley falls to number 8 the Eagles will absolutely have a hard time passing him up as he is a rare combination of need and the best player available. While this is not the “sexy” pick with the possibility of getting a player like Vernon Hargreaves or Ezekiel Elliot, the offensive line can’t be ignored for much longer. Plus, if they do manage to snag a lineman of Stanley’s caliber every skilled player on the team will improve due to his ability. It starts with the line and the Eagles should not pass up on clearly the second best lineman in the draft.

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So the Eagles now have a young offensive line to protect young quarterback Sam Bradford. The second round is now approaching, and the Eagles without a second round pick make a move to get into the second round. They do what needs to be done to get into the second round to get a new toy for quarterback Sam Bradford. Much like the Andy Reid era, they find their quarterback a receiver with speed, Will Fuller. Fuller fills another position of need for the Eagles, despite signing Chris Givens earlier this week. Fuller possesses the ability to stretch the field with his insane speed. The Eagles front office made it clear they wanted to imitate the glory days of Andy Reid, why not get a poor man’s Desean Jackson in the second round? Once again, he fills a need for this team and has the potential to grow into one of the top deep threats in the NFL. He has a good work ethic and keeps his mouth shut, something that is quite rare in today’s world. Plus he is from Philadelphia, it’s a match made in heaven.

Now the mid-rounds are here and the Eagles still have a need on the board. The Eagle’s backfield was abysmal last year. There’s no sugar coating that. Could Chip’s system be to blame for that? Maybe. At any rate, Ryan Mathews is still under contract and so is Darren Sproles, but neither of them really have a future here as Mathews can’t stay healthy to save his life and Sproles isn’t an every down back. Why not grab CJ Prosise? While he is a little raw, he has a lot of upside, he has the desired size of a three down back and can catch the ball out of the backfield like a much beloved Eagles running back by the name of Brian Westbrook, who just so happened to come out of the Andy Reid era. As I mentioned before, Mathews is still under contract so Prosise won’t need to step in and be a playmaker right away, he can ride the bench and learn from two proven veteran running backs. The fit makes sense and he is a low risk, high reward type player who the Eagles should take a chance on if the opportunity presents itself.

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While the title of this article is clever (if I do say so myself) and fun to put up for this Irish holiday, these are three players I would absolutely love to see playing for the Eagles this season. They all fit positions of need and have the potential to be building blocks for the new regime. These three picks would pay perfect homage to a team trying to relive the glory days of Andy Reid. Let’s face it, the bookend tackle, speed demon wide receiver, and utility knife running back were Reid’s bread and butter in the latter years. These picks make too much sense. Also, Ronnie Stanley, Will Fuller, and CJ Prosise will have successful NFL careers and I would be heartbroken if I don’t see (at least one of) them in midnight green this season.

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Three “Irishmen” The Eagles Should Target In The NFL Draft

By Anthony Mazziotti | Mar 18, 2016

In the spirit of St. Patrick’s day, let’s take a look at three players from Notre Dame who the Philadelphia Eagles could should draft in the 2016 NFL Draft.

More from Section 215