Eagles land the 2022 NFL Draft’s biggest steal via Nakobe Dean selection
So, this is what it feels like when you take Christmas and move it to the end of April… Don’t readjust the screens on your laptops or desktops. There’s no need to restart those iPhones or Androids. The Philadelphia Eagles actually did it! With the 83rd-overall selection of the 2022 NFL Draft, the Birds selected Nakobe Dean, a linebacker from the College Football Playoff National Championship-game winning Bulldogs.
He and Jordan Davis were teammates at the collegiate level in Athens, Georgia. They’ll be teammates in the NFL as well. It will be fun to watch them grow up together.
Jordan was one of the first Birds to congratulate him. Take a look.
Got my boy @NakobeDean with me! Delayed not denied bro 💯 let’s show Philly how we do it 😁 #FlyEaglesFly #GoBirds
— Jordan Davis (Parody Account) (@jordanxdavis99) April 30, 2022
Darius ‘Big Play’ Slay is on board as well.
I talked him up…. Let go @NakobeDean time to work!!✊🏽✊🏽
— Darius Slay (@bigplay24slay) April 30, 2022
It’s time to work indeed…
Can we call officially call Nakobe Dean a steal now?
Many moons ago, when the pre-draft process began, there were theories that Nakobe Dean might be the first linebacker taken. Most graded Devin Lloyd higher, but many of those same voices saw Dean as a top-20 prospect.
Pro Football Focus, on their big board, ranked him as the second-best linebacker prospect and the 19th-best prospect overall regardless of position. Last year, everyone thought grabbing Kenneth Gainwell in Round 5 was a steal (and it was). This is a supercharged version of that same type of draft board mastery.
We’ve been very critical of Eagles general manager/vice president Howie Roseman (and for good reason), but this draft may make some of his detractors back off a little… We said ‘a little’. There’s no way we can’t pick on Howie, right? It just seems like the right thing to do.
As far as the Dean selection goes, Philly gets the linebacker many of the fans wanted, and they get him much later than many could have ever imagined. We expect him to play with a chip on his shoulder.
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We’re talking about a man that was 2021’s Butkus Award winner and a Unanimous All-American. In 36 career games at the NCAA level, he racked 168 tackles, 7.5 sacks, two interceptions, seven pass breakups, and three forced fumbles.
We pick on them when they deserve it. We have to give them credit when it’s due. The Philadelphia Eagles are having a fantastic draft through three rounds.