Philadelphia Eagles: Jerry Jeudy and Carson Wentz would be unstoppable

If reports of Jerry Jeudy dropping in the first round are true, he should be the top name on the Philadelphia Eagles’ draft board.

Whenever news breaks right before the draft about a top prospect, it has to be taken with a grain of salt. Teams will throw up smokescreens and leak rumors in an attempt to change public perception all to try to influence the board in their favor.

For every legit medical issue that drops a player like Myles Jack‘s degenerative knee injury in 2016, there’s a clear fib meant to trick other teams, like Dave Gettleman‘s bread crumb trail of obvious connections to Justin Herbert in an attempt to drum up interest in the fourth overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.

However, when not one, but two local sports personalities break the news that one of the best wide receivers in this year’s class may drop due to an undisclosed 2018 knee injury, I think it’s at least worth monitoring – especially when that player is Alabama‘s Jerry Jeudy.

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The 2018 Biletnikoff Award winner for the best wide receiver in the nation, Jeudy is one of the best pure wide receivers to enter the NFL in the last half-decade. He’s got good size at 6-foot-1, 192 pounds, fantastic hands, and experience playing both on the outside and in the slot. Jeudy also just so happens to be the most complete route runner in this year’s class, as he routinely breaks the ankles of college cornerbacks coming out of his breaks.

You don’t just record two straight 1,100-plus yard receiving seasons by accident.

Do you like Amari Cooper? What about Odell Beckham? Would you like to have him on a five-year deal worth $20ish million? That’s the kind of instant impact Jeudy could have on an offense, at least if he can stay healthy.

That’s the keyword, however: Healthy.

If Jeudy was healthy, he’d probably be the first overall wide receiver coming off the board on Thursday night, but this knee injury – if you believe the reports – could affect that. I mean think about it, if you’re a GM picking in the 10-15 range, you probably aren’t heading up a particularly good team, and have to land top-tier talents who can produce at a high level for years to come. If you have Jeudy and CeeDee Lamb rated the same on the big board, why take that extra risk if you don’t have to?

Say what you will about talent acquisition, but most GMs can’t afford to have multiple bad drafts in a row and keep their jobs. Risk management is just part of the job, for better or worse.

If Jeudy starts to drop, past the Las Vegas Raiders, the San Francisco 49ers, and even the Denver Broncos, he would without a doubt be the best player available on the board when the Eagles take the clock at 21 – leagues above players like Denzel Mims, Tee Higgins, and my personal favorite, Jalen Reagor.

When you put on the tape, that becomes obvious.

Despite playing alongside the likes of certified first-rounder Henry Ruggs III and potential 2021 first-round pick DeVonta Smith, Jeudy was head and shoulders the best wide receiver in Nick Saban‘s offensive attack, and clearly the favorite target of Tua Tagovailoa.

Would Tagovailoa even be a first-round draft pick if it wasn’t for Jeudy? Yeah, 100 percent, but having a do-it-all receiver with fantastic hands and legit 4.45 speed certainly didn’t hurt his case.

Do you know who else could use a 6-foot-1 safety blanket capable of playing all three wide receiver spots as a rookie? Carson Wentz.

Now a lot has been written about just how ineffective the Philadelphia Eagles‘ offense was in 2019, so much so that I dare not go into too much detail – let’s just say, no team wants their top three receivers to be a tight end, a tight end, and a running back – but that unit should be much better in 2019 if everyone can stay healthy. DeSean Jackson will be back, Alshon Jeffery will eventually be back – that is, unless Peter King is right and he gets traded on draft night – and Greg Ward will hopefully be with the team for the entire season.

But here’s the thing, Jeudy would immediately slot in as the best player of that group bar none.

Jeudy is faster than Jeffery (and JJ Arcega-Whiteside), bigger than Ward, and a better route runner than Jackson. While the Eagles currently employ a ton of specialists, Jeudy would be the most complete receiver to do the midnight green since Jeremy Maclin.

Honestly, Jeudy would be the best wide receiver the Eagles had on their roster since Terrell Owens, which is really saying something.

Will Jerry Jeudy ultimately drop on draft day? Probably a little, all things considered, but not far enough for the Philadelphia Eagles to select him 21st overall. However, if he does drop to 21, or Howie Roseman has an ‘in’ to trade up a few spots to draft him in the late teens, there isn’t a better player available to elevate Doug Pederson‘s offense, and jumpstart Carson Wentz’s return to his 2017 MVP form in the 2020 NFL Draft regardless of position.