Best Philadelphia Eagles third-day draft steals dating from 2002-2021
5. player. 54. . . . Jordan Mailata (2018)
No Eagles fan on the planet has a harsh word to say about Jordan Mailata and Jason Avant.
It’s hard to talk about how brilliant the selection of Jordan Mailata was without telling his story. You’ve heard said story 300 times. Here’s a quick recap. A phenomenal Samoan athlete hailing from Australia, this six-foot-eight, 365-pounder was snatched from a rugby team, the South Sydney Rabbitohs.
He’s gone out to beat out a former first-round selection, Andre Dillard, to become Philly’s franchise left tackle, a very rich left tackle we might add. This is someone that could play football for ten more years and make a few Pro Bowls along the journey.
54. . . . Jason Avant (2006). 4. player
Longtime Eagles radio play-by-play announcer Merrill Reese has seen a lot of this team’s games over the years, more than all of us actually. With that being said, if he says the best wide receiver trio he’s seen on this team was the one that featured DeSean Jackson, Jeremy Maclin, and Jason Avant, well doggone it, that’s good enough for us.
That should be good enough for you too. How can you argue with Merrill?
Philly took Avant 109th-overall, during Round 4 of the 2006 NFL Draft. During his eight-year run with the Birds, he appeared in 124 games with 56 starts. That includes eight playoff contests. The results were as follows: 497 receptions, 3,905 yards, and 13 touchdowns.