Philadelphia Eagles Draft | 6 East-West Shrine Game Targets

Trey Hendrickson, DE, Florida Atlantic University

The player about which I’ve heard the most hype this week? East Team’s Trey Hendrickson. Kid’s straight yoked, running around the field with his jersey Ezekiel-Elliot-crop-topped and embarrassing every offensive lineman put opposite him.

I’ve heard three really big things regarding Hendrickson: motor, a variety of moves, and suddenness. On the few rushes during which Hendrickson hasn’t gotten home, he plays relentlessly, constantly fighting to penetrate the pocket. He’s a high effort player.

His pass-rushing arsenal is fearsome. In various clips, I’ve seen him win with a spin, a rip and bend on the outside, a straight bull rush, and an awesome swim move right here:

This play was for bragging rights. The defense put out their best EDGE rusher; the offense, their best OT. The losing squad had to carry the pads of the winning squad off the field. The coaching staff chose Hendrickson for that battle.

Watch it from a different angle–talking about suddenness, see how he flashes inside to set the OT’s feet, then quickly relocates laterally to win the edge. His swipe on the OT’s left arm? Money.

After a cursory glance at the tape, I can tell you Hendrickson sets the edge nicely against the run, so he can stay on the field on all three downs. He’s a perfect candidate for the third DE spot behind incumbents Vinny Curry and Brandon Graham.

But it only gets better: Hendrickson led the nation with four blocked punts this year–four. The Eagles love to snag ST contributors, and with the likely release of LB Bryan Braman looming, Hendrickson’s effort and production could slide into Braman’s role on Dave Fipp’s squad seamlessly.

Predicted Round: 4th