Philadelphia Eagles: 2021 draft haul defined by upside (and risk)
By David Esser
One of the best things you can do when drafting (specifically when attempting to rebuild a roster), is to target “best player available” throughout the entire process. For the most part, I think the Philadelphia Eagles did just that this past weekend.
Picks like Landon Dickerson in the second round and Milton Williams in the third in particular screamed of Howie Roseman and the Eagles “sticking to their board”, as opposed to reaching for a specific depth chart need.
While I do commend such a strategy, the Eagles selections weren’t without risk this year. In fact, most of them carry a good amount of risk attached to them.
The Philadelphia Eagles 2021 draft haul comes with significant risk.
Whether for health concerns or some other external reason, the Philadelphia Eagles 2021 draft class is one that’s going to be decided by both its overall upside, and the overall risk that comes with such a pool of rookies.
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The health concerns.
Right off the bat, the Eagles took more than one prospect with injury-related concerns.
The most notable player in this category is of course that of second-round selection Landon Dickerson. When healthy, he’s been one of the best centers in college football the past few seasons. However, the issue is that he hasn’t been able to stay healthy – at all.
Dickerson has suffered two season-ending ACL injuries, and has suffered injuries to each of his ankles – one of which required surgery.
I’m not arguing Dickerson’s talent or potential – he’s an elite caliber prospect. But the inherent risk that comes with drafting such an injury-riddled player is pretty significant, especially in the second round.
Sixth-round pick Marlon Tuipulotu is another player whom got flagged for his injury history, and all eyes are going to be on the team’s severely undersized first-round selection Devonta Smith.
While Smith didn’t suffer any notable injuries in college, weighing in at 166lbs could lead to some issues at the professional level. The historical data for players that light isn’t promising.