Philadelphia Eagles: Prince Tega Wanogho and Jack Driscoll are a polar pair

While Prince Tega Wanogho and Jack Driscoll played the same position at Auburn, they project to have very different careers with the Philadelphia Eagles.

The Philadelphia Eagles entered the 2020 NFL Draft with a deceptive need for added depth on their offensive line.

Granted, it wasn’t the team’s biggest need, as they had much more glaring holes at wide receiver, backup quarterback, linebacker, and in their defensive backfield, but the Eagles simply couldn’t go into Week 1 of the regular season with Matt Pryor and Nate Herbig as their first two players coming off the bench.

And to Howie Roseman‘s credit, that mission was thoroughly accomplished. However, the way he pulled it off raised quite a few eyebrows in the 215, to say the least.

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It all started in the fourth round, where the Eagles used their second selection to select do-it-all Auburn offensive lineman Jack Driscoll.

Now on paper, the move made a ton of sense, as Driscoll was one of the most athletic linemen who tested at the 2020 NFL Combine, played both guard and tackle over his four-year college career split between UMass and Auburn, and reportedly showcased an advanced knowledge of the position during the pre-draft process. Barring a shockingly steep learning curve or more likely an injury, the Eagles could presumably rest easy with Driscoll active on game days as a swing reserve tackle.

And then, to paraphrase DJ Khalid, the Eagles drafted another one.

After selecting wide receiver John Hightower in the fifth round, Shaun Bradley in the sixth, and Quez Watkins in the sixth – a trio of moves that ironically enough were also double (and triple) dips on positions they already addressed on Days 1 and 2 – the Eagles used their second to last selection to reunite Driscoll with his college teammate Prince Tega Wanogho 65 picks later.

But, like why?

With Halapoulivaati Vaitai officially a member of the Detroit Lions, Jason Peters a member of the… well no one yet, and Andre Dillard‘s long-term future as a franchise left tackle still up in the air, shoring up reserve tackle really isn’t a bad idea, but adding two? I know Simon Stepaniak and Jake Hanson went off the board at pick 218 and 219 but going tackle again, especially one like PTW who can probably only play tackle seems like a poor utilization of assets, right?

Maybe not.

You see, despite playing in the same offense, Driscoll and Tega Wanogho are actually very different players with very different career trajectories with the Eagles.

You see, Driscoll is a technician. After committing his offseason to learn the intricacies of the center position – which in and of itself is pretty impressive – Driscoll projects as a do-it-all backup offensive lineman who may never start with consistency but will all but certainly be active for all 16 (and eventually 17) games for the duration of his career. If he does eventually elevate his game, get a bit stronger, and earn an opportunity to compete for a starting role, it will probably be on the interior, as his short arms may make taking on NFL edge rushers a tough ask with regularity.

Driscoll can also add value right away as a sixth offensive lineman on obvious running downs or near the goal line. If Jalen Hurts were to take direct snaps from under center as a “wildcat quarterback” in an empty backfield, Driscoll might be the team’s best option to insert into the game to open up holes as a pulling blocker in space.

I wouldn’t be surprised if Driscoll plays 150 snaps in 2020, even if all five of the team’s starters play 100 percent of the offensive snaps.

The same, however, can’t be said for Tega Wanogho.

On paper, Tega Wanogho looks every bit like an NFL-ready offensive tackle, but his tape shows a ton of inconsistencies that need to be worked out before he can reach that level. A “late-comer to the sport“, Tega Wanogho has less than a decade of American football under his belt, and it shows. For every dominant block where PTW looks like the next Jason Peters, there’s another snap where he misses a rusher entirely, muffs a block, or does a combination of the two.

Even still, Tega Wanogho has the feet of a soccer player and the body of an All-Pro who could maybe even reach that level if he figures the game out. The Eagles didn’t select Tega Wanogho to play in 2020. They may not have even selected him to play in 2021. But if Dillard does falter and/or Tega Wanogho puts it all together under the watchful eye of Jeff Stoutland – considered one of the better offensive line coaches in the NFL – having the 22-year-old actual Prince under contract for the next four seasons gives Philly a developmental prospect to develop moving forward.

No one expected Vaitai to come in and start as a rookie, yet his play in relief of Peters proved crucial to the team’s 2017 run through the playoffs and Super Bowl 52 victory. To me, Tega Wanogho has a higher ceiling than Vaitai and could be a Jason Kelce-esque steal in the sixth round if he reaches that level. Granted, Tega Wanogho may never reach that level of play, and may never even play in a regular-season game for the Eagles as a result, but that gamble is certainly a risk worth taking.

While it may have been wise to add at least one veteran journey-lineman to the fray in free agency – as Stefen Wisniewski was just as vital to the team’s Super Bowl run as Vaitai – having four young reserves who can continue to learn, develop, and play if need be isn’t the worst situation in the world.

By drafting Jack Driscoll and Prince Tega Wanogho in the same, um, draft, the Philadelphia Eagles added a pair of athletic tackles who know the same verbiage, played in the same offensive scheme, and can help each other grow in 2020 and beyond. This strategy worked wonders with Halapoulivaati Vaitai and Matt Pryor, and while the duo have very different career trajectories, it’s safe to say having two more under-25 offensive linemen to build with moving forward is better than one.