Alright, I lied. Yes, the Philadelphia Eagles should 100 percent draft the best player available across the board whenever possible, but if there’s one specific position Howie Roseman should specifically target in the hopes of landing a premier talent, it would be cornerback.
Yes, the Eagles will probably add another cornerback in free agency, and if they sign a big-time player like J.C. Jackson, they might opt against picking one with a top-20 pick, but if they don’t, I would imagine a player like Roger McCreary would be among the players in the conversation.
A member of the draft’s second tier of cornerbacks behind consensus top-10 picks Derek Stingley Jr. and Andrew Booth Jr., McCreary is in the conversation with players like Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner for the third cornerback off the board.
Last week we mocked Sauce, so why not check out McCreary this week to see how he’d look in midnight green?
A three-star recruit who played his high school ball in the home of the Senior Bowl, Mobile, Alabama, McCreary is a 6-foot, 190-pound corner with long arms, great ball skills, and a willingness to wrap up would-be receivers once the ball gets in their hands. During his senior season in Auburn, McCreary had two interceptions and 14 passes defensed, and honestly, both numbers would have been even higher had opposing teams been more willing to throw in his direction.
At 21, McCreary has four years of high-level cornerback play on his resume with the potential to start at the NFL level by Year 2 at the absolute latest. Still, even if he’s not as pro-ready as, say, Stingley Jr., and will get knocked for his shorter arms, McCreary could still have a long and healthy career at the NFL level, especially if tasked with playing off of a top flight cornerback like Darius Slay.