Philadelphia Eagles 2019 NFL Draft watch: Karan Higdon, A.J. Brown

Let’s take a closer look at two skill players the Philadelphia Eagles are interested in, running back Karan Higdon and wide receiver A.J. Brown.

It seems like we’re right back in the same spot every six months. The Philadelphia Eagles need running backs, and wide receivers, and linebackers and running backs. We said it last season. We said it right before the Super Bowl season. We’re saying it now. Philly’s looking for some weapons for Carson Wentz, and it appears they took another step in that direction as they hosted Karan Higdon and A.J. Brown on two separate pre-draft visits.

Higdon’s a running back out of the Michigan Wolverines‘ program. Brown is a six-foot, 226-pound wide receiver from the Ole Miss Rebels football factory.

On March 10th, Jordan Reid‏ of Cover 1 announced Philly was hosting Higdon, Brown, and several other prospects on the 11th. Eliot Shorr-Parks reported Philly invited Brown in for a visit on the 21st of March as well.

Let’s begin with the wideout.

Brown had a good NFL Combine as he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.49 seconds, put up 19 reps on the bench press and posted 36.5 inches and 120 inches in the vertical and broad jump respectively. In 2018, he snagged 85 receptions for 1,320 yards and six touchdowns.

NFL.com compares him to JuJu Smith-Schuster and believes he could be an instant starter for NFL team that drafts him.

Here’s more from his draft profile:

"Slot bully with rare combination of brawn and quickness that allows him to separate with both power and foot quickness. Brown has the size and demeanor to take on a relatively heavy workload as a safety blanket for a young quarterback in a ball-control passing attack. He’ll see an upgrade in athlete across from him, but he has the feet and body control to uncover and create windows as a premium route-runner."

That’s good stuff. Let’s talk a little Higdon now.

In 39 collegiate games, Higdon toted the rock 471 times for 2,616 yards and 27 touchdowns. That’s a career average of 5.6 yards per carry. During the Combine, he rocked out with a 4.49 40-yard dash time. He’s five-foot-nine. He weighs 206 pounds, and he’s that downhill type of runner Philly fans have been clamoring for.

Here’s more from his draft profile on NFL.com:

"“What you see is what you get” running back with good vision and consistent physicality in his approach. Higdon is a one-cut runner who is a little undersized relative to his physical running style. He uses his vision and lane choices to avoid congested areas, but lacks the elusiveness to slip many open field tackles. He’s a willing blocking option on third downs, but hasn’t proven to be much of a threat out of the backfield and is likely to be pegged as an early-down backup with the toughness to handle spot starting duties if needed."

Jot both of these names down, The Eagles are giving them serious looks. Might ‘The Birds’ end up with one of these guys (or both of them)? Only time will tell. We’ll have to wait and see what happens.

In the meantime, you want to pay close attention whenever their names come up. You’re going to be hearing a lot about both of them between now and the end of April.