Philadelphia Eagles: Reviewing Day 1 of 2015 NFL Combine

The first day of on-field drills at the 2015 NFL Combine is in the books. Both offensive linemen and tight ends took the field yesterday and were able to show off their skill and athleticism throughout various drills. The Philadelphia Eagles could certainly use some young depth along the offensive line so they definitely had their eye on the participants during the day.

With tight end James Casey also being officially released, the team may be on the look for a fourth tight end as well. This isn’t a particularly strong draft class as far as tight ends go, but there are some intriguing developmental prospects that Eagles head coach Chip Kelly could shape and mold into a dangerous weapon at the position. For example, two players that had especially impressive days on the field were South Alabama tight end Wes Saxton and Penn State tight end Jesse James.

Saxton didn’t put up outrageous numbers during his senior season but has the potential to be a solid “move” tight end at the next level. He showed off his leaping ability with a 36″ vertical, third best among tight ends. I actually got a chance to talk to Saxton and discussed his potential fit with the Eagles in my draft profile on him. What impressed people the most was Saxton’s 40-yard dash of 4.65, second best among tight ends. Here’s a video of Saxton running his 40-yard dash:

Penn State’s Jesse James is hard to miss at 6-7, 261 lbs., but that isn’t what impressed me the most. He didn’t look too impressive during the speed drills but he did post a 37 1/2″ vertical jump, second best among tight ends. As well as the best broad jump number of any tight end with an insane 121″ jump. Combining those explosive numbers with his already ridiculous frame and James’ catch radius is unbelievable.

According to Mock Draftable, James’ size and combine numbers compare similarly to Chicago Bears tight end Martellus Bennett and Jacksonville Jaguars tight end Marcedes Lewis, that’s pretty good company. It’s safe to say James would certainly help the Eagles problems in the red zone, that’s for sure.

Eagles /

Eagles

Let’s not forget about the big boys up front, the offensive linemen. Everyone will talk about the more well known prospects like Brandon Scherff, Andrus Peat and La’el Collins. But two players that really stood out were Oregon offensive tackle Jake Fisher and Hobart guard/center Ali Marpet. Both prospects put up impressive numbers in almost every drill and showed off some freakish athleticism.

Fisher has the experience in Chip Kelly’s offense because of his days as a duck, he would be an obvious fit in Philadelphia. He’s currently projected to be drafted somewhere on day two of the draft but after the numbers he posted, the Eagles could even target him with their first round pick. Fisher measured in at 6-6, 306 lbs. and ran a 5.01 40-yard dash, that’s going to earn him some money.

But many expected Fisher to put up numbers like he did, it’s safe to say people weren’t expecting the same from Marpet. After an impressive week at the Senior Bowl, he put his name on the map with some ranking him in the top 100 prospects in the draft. But if there was any remaining questions about Marpet as an NFL prospect, he put them to rest at the combine. He posted the best 40-yard dash time of any offensive linemen with a ridiculous 4.98. With his athleticism, Marpet would fit in well at guard for the Eagles, potentially replacing current starter Todd Herremans.

Now let’s get to some juicy rumors off the field. According to Draft Insider’s Tony Pauline, the Eagles are the “front runners” to land former Seattle Seahawks cornerback Byron Maxwell. I’ve been very vocal on Twitter about my hesitation to throw big money at Maxwell. But it’s encouraging to see that the Eagles are actually willing to address their giant need at cornerback with arguably the best free agent available at the position.

There have also been various reports about which prospects the Eagles are going to meet with or have already met with. Now these meetings could mean absolutely nothing, so take it with a grain of salt, as they say. But so far the Eagles have been linked to the following players at the combine:

Brandon Bridge, QB, South Alabama
Brett Hundley, QB, UCLA
Marcus Mariota, QB, Oregon
Blake Sims, QB, Alabama
Connor Halliday, QB, Washington State
T.J. Yeldon, RB, Alabama
Denzel Perryman, LB, Miami (Fla.)
Eric Kendricks, LB, UCLA

Of course it’s intriguing that the Eagles have talked to so many quarterbacks but that just shows they realize they need some help at the position. Nick Foles had a historic season in 2013 but followed it up with an alarmingly bad season in 2014. Mark Sanchez is a free agent and Matt Barkley hasn’t shown much since being drafted. Philadelphia has to do something at quarterback and they know it.

Their interest in linebackers Denzel Perryman and Eric Kendricks is something to watch because neither player really fits the “bigger people beat up little people” motto that Chip Kelly uses but both are very talented players. With starting linebacker DeMeco Ryans suffering yet again another achilles injury for the second time in his career, the birds have to think about a potential replacement.

Last but not least is the interview with running back T.J. Yeldon, which may cause some to say “oh my goodness, they might cut LeSean McCoy“. But in reality, it’s just the team looking at a big, talented back that could potentially replace restricted free agent Chris Polk if he manages to escape the team’s grasp.

All in all, it was an interesting first day of on-field drills at the 2015 NFL Combine. Now that the “boring” positions are done with, it’s time to shift the focus to the skill position players today as the quarterbacks, wide receivers and running backs will all take the field. The Philadelphia Eagles could potentially use some help at all three of those positions, so be sure to check back here on Inside the Iggles to see who they were taking a close look at.

Next: 2015 NFL Mock Draft: Philadelphia Eagles Get Defensive

More from Inside the Iggles

Home/Eagles Draft