Eagles draft: Ranking the only prospects who make sense in Round 1

Trent McDuffie is a realistic option for the Eagles in Round 1.

There’s this theory that the Eagles don’t put enough stock in the linebacker position. We don’t seem to spend much time discussing how they’ve also devalued the cornerback position, but perhaps we should.

Since 2017, they’ve only drafted four. Twice in the past five years, they’ve taken a cornerback in Round 4… when they probably should have taken one earlier. One seems to have worked out pretty well (Avonte Maddox). The jury is still out on the other one (Zech McPhearson). That’s okay though. McPhearson is young and still has time to turn things around.

The only other two cornerbacks that Philly has drafted from 2017 on are Sidney Jones and Rasul Douglas, both taken in 2017. They’re both playing in other cities now, but Jones’ add was an interesting decision in that Philly took him in Round 2 knowing he’d have to rehab for the majority of, if not all of his rookie season. The hope was he’d prove why he had been seen as a first-round target upon his return. Unfortunately, he never did.

Jones was so bad that many Eagles fans have turned on the Washington Huskies program and any other prospect they’ve produced after Jones’ departure. Those are the fans that aren’t huge Trent McDuffie enthusiasts because Jones played at Washington.

Rest assured, however, that this is the third-best corner in the selection meeting (more on that later). If the Birds miss in the top two but are looking to add one in the first round, McDuffie would be an excellent consolation prize.