Philadelphia Eagles Draft: Post-Combine Seven Round Mock

Round 3: Tanoh Kpassagnon, DE, Villanova

Another athletic trench addition, another Philly schools product, another awesome name. Great draft so far.

The hype for Kpassagnon has climbed since the Senior Bowl, given his ludicrous size (6’7, 289 lbs, 35 5/8″ arms). Back in Mobile, he did flash a few moves, but as a pass rusher he’s still technically unrefined.

While his long frame betrayed him in the agility drills, I was more interested in his explosiveness (10 yard split, broad jump, vertical jump). A 30″ vertical wasn’t great, but a 1.69 40-yard split and 10’8 broad get the job done. His height and length likely inflated the broad jump score, but I saw what I needed to see.

But can Kpassagnon grow into more than just a physical freak at the defensive line position? The frame alone makes the gamble worth it, and having the opportunity to sit behind DE Vinny Curry for a year will help as well.

The tape has the flashes, so I’ll buy that as well. His inside rush has particular potential, and that patented Connor Barwin long-arm rush? Kpassagnon should be able to develop a nasty one of those as well.

I worry about Kpassagnon’s body control, which isn’t a trait you generally track in defensive ends. But given his size, he can get knocked off his spot, and off-balance, real easy. He’ll need to drastically improve his play-through-contact if he’s to ever set the edge as an NFL player.

The addition of Kpassagnon’s length opposite Graham’s relative stoutness helps Philly match up against tackles of different sizes, and both have a penetrating backfield presence in the run game. I like that a lot moving forward.