Philadelphia Eagles: 3 cornerbacks worth a Day 2 pick

(Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images)
(Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images) /
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Philadelphia Eagles
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Crimson Tide . Jalyn Armour-Davis. 51. player. 829. . Cornerback

Alright, this may be a bit of a hot take, but hear me out; very few people expect to see Jalyn Armour-Davis drafted with the 51st overall pick. Most talent evaluators are pegging him as a third round pick, and some have even suggested that his absolute ceiling is the tail end of the second round in the upper 60s.

Could that thought process hold true? You bet, but it’s hard to imagine the Alabama product holding on all the way to pick 83, and thus, if he’s the apple of Howie Roseman’s eye, he might have to weather some C+ instant reaction draft grades to secure an athletic cornerback with mile-high potential in the second round.

Measuring in at 6-foot-1, 197 pounds, Armour-Davis is a prototypical outside cornerback who looks tailor-made to play in Jonathan Gannon’s scheme. Though he only has an average wingspan and turned in less than ideal performances at the 20-yard shuttle, broad jump, and 3-cone drill, Armour-Davis has big hands, a 37 inch vertical, and ran a prototypical 4.39 40 at the 2022 NFL Draft combine, which was all on full display during his lone season as a starter at Alabama.

After tearing his ACL as a freshman and spending two seasons in limited action after that, Armour-Davis finally took on a full-time starting role in 2021 as a redshirt junior and ran with the opportunity, allowing just 27 of the 44 balls thrown his way to be completed for 290 yards and zero touchdowns. His game film is clean, with good tackling, great press technique, and a rapidly developing eye for the ball, as his three interceptions clearly showcased.

Call him injury prone, call him a one-year wonder, I call him arguably the highest-ceiling cornerback outside of the top-6 and a player worthy of a late-ish second round pick with similar upside to Clemson’s Andrew Booth.