Grading Eagles first-round pIcks of the Doug Pederson, Nick Sirianni eras
The Philadelphia Eagles have played football for 90 seasons. The most recent was one to remember. The 91st brings expectations as well as intrigue.
After fielding a statistical monster and arguably the most talented roster in franchise history, in a flash, a team that had the opportunity to be remembered as the best ever will now be forever remembered as one of the most disappointing. Fear not! After keeping most of the veteran core intact, this franchise, its fans, and the media that track its every move are beginning to grow accustomed to a feeling that has come and gone from time to time, one that feels like hope.
After qualifying for a Super Bowl and representing the National Football Conference as its winner last season, the Birds are expected to contend for a title again. If they nail their first two choices in the NFL Draft, a pair of picks they own in the coming selection meeting, the buzz will continue to grow.
As an organization, the Eagles have won three NFL Championships. They won their first Super Bowl to conclude the 2017-2018 campaign. The aforementioned trip to football’s grand stage this past February marks their second appearance in five years and their fourth trip overall.
They couldn’t have done it without the efforts of two talented coaches, their two most recent, Doug Pederson and Nick Sirianni, and some well-invested draft choices. It hasn’t been perfect, but the Birds have hit some home runs. Let’s rewind the tape.
Here are the final grades for every Eagles’ first-round selection made during the Doug Pederson and Nick Sirianni coaching eras.
If you include Pat Shurmur’s win over the New York Giants as interim leader to conclude the 2015-2016 Eagles season, Philly has been the home of 24 head coaches. The two most recent, Pederson and Sirianni, both led the Birds to a Super Bowl appearance during their second seasons at the helm.
There have been ups and downs during both eras. We’ve seen home runs and huge misses in the draft. Looking back we can make some determinations about both regimes. With another NFL Draft approaching and with excitement building for the possibility of two young stars joining the nest, here are some final grades for every first-round selection made during their tenures.
2016: Carson Wentz
So, here we are. The selection of Carson Wentz split both a locker room and a fan base. He left the Eagles having never won a playoff game. He had a target painted on his back and a knife driven through it by at least two wide receivers he shared the field with, and if his NFL career continues, which at this point isn’t certain, it will do so with him accepting the role of being a career backup.
Did we leave anything out?
Carson Wentz didn’t regress. He fell off a cliff, and even though he spent his final three seasons in the City of Brotherly Love having to walk past a statue of Nick Foles, had it not been for an MVP-level season in 2017 that set up a playoff run led by Foles, Philly might still be searching for its first Vince Lombardi Trophy.
That and his heroic final month in 2019 that led to another postseason berth is enough to prevent his selection as the second player taken in the 2016 NFL Draft from being dismissed as a total failure and him being remembered as one of the biggest busts in franchise history.
Final grade: Above average (B+)
2017: Derek Barnett
It’s hard to believe this, but just six years after the Eagles added eight young Birds to their nest as members of their 2017 draft class, there’s only one member of that fraternity that is still on this roster… Derek Barnett.
You can be honest. You forgot about him, didn’t you?
As we sit here today and reminisce, the highlights of the former 14th-overall selection’s young career include a strip-sack in the NFC Championship Game versus the Minnesota Vikings when the game was still in question, being the man that recovered Brandon Graham’s forced fumble of Tom Brady in Super Bowl LII, and a game-ending sack of Andrew Luck in 2018.
Sadly, however, Barnett is best remembered for some ill-advised personal-foul penalties. Maybe he’s a late-bloomer, but he has yet to justify the first-round pick Philly used to acquire him. He has also had issues with staying healthy. Two of his first six seasons have ended with trips to the injured reserve.
During 65 regular-season games with 45 starts, he has collected 147 tackles with 21 sacks and three forced fumbles. In short, that isn’t what you’re looking for from a top-15 selection in any draft.
Final grade: Below average (D)
2019: Andre Dillard
Andre Dillard was drafted as the heir apparent to future Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee Jason Peters. It was expected that Andre would be Philly’s left tackle of the future and protect the blind side of whomever the quarterback might be for a decade or more. It was a great plan. There was just one problem with it.
Andre Dillard didn’t have a third of Jason Peters’ talent. Eventually, the Birds found a former rugby star that never played American Football before, one with a nice singing voice by the way, and he wound up winning the job.
Dillard never became what Philly hoped he’d be. He had a nightmare start at right tackle versus the Seattle Seahawks once, and he missed the entire 2020 season because of injury, but during his final two seasons, whenever he was forced into reserve duty he turned out to be decent. Still, it can’t be ignored that, just four years after being drafted 22nd overall, the Eagles have decided to move on.
Final grade: Below average (D)
2020: Jalen Reagor (F)
If we’re being honest, discussing Jalen Reagor makes the person doing so feel like they’re kicking a man while he’s down. How many times can we discuss the Eagles’ decision to select him over Justin Jefferson?
We all know how the careers of both players have turned out. Bringing that up again these days seems cruel, but as much as we try to avoid doing so, two things remain true.
One, whether we choose to acknowledge this or not, we all know that their stories will be connected forever, especially in Philly.
Second, and this is the bad news, making the decision to draft Jalen Reagor might forever be remembered as one of the worst draft-day selections that Howie Roseman ever made. The good news is a rose grew from the concrete.
Had it not been for Jalen Reagor’s selection, Philadelphia wouldn’t have drafted DeVonta Smith one year later before making the trade to add A.J. Brown to serve as the Swole Batman to DeVonta’s Skinny Batman… So, everything worked out right?
Regardless of how you feel about that statement, Reagor still needs a grade here. There isn’t an Eagles fan in the Delaware Valley or anywhere else on Planet Earth that doesn’t know what that grade is.
Final grade: Fail (F)
2021: DeVonta Smith
Winning the Heisman Trophy doesn’t guarantee a successful NFL career. As a matter of fact, the opposite has often been true. Heisman winners often fail at football’s highest level, especially recently. Thankfully, the Slim Reaper is an obvious exception.
Following some draft-day misses at the wide receiver position, DeVonta was taken tenth overall in 2021. He responded by setting a rookie franchise record for receiving yards before setting the single-season record for receptions by a wide receiver in the sophomore campaign (95). That’s second to only Zach Ertz in Eagles history as the former tight end snagged 116 receptions in 2018.
DeVonta does everything a receiver is asked to do at an elite level. What’s crazy is he still hasn’t hit his ceiling yet. Discussions about his size be damned. We may be watching one of the great careers in franchise history.
Final grade: We are witnessing excellence (A+)
2022: Jordan Davis (B+)
Jordan Davis‘ stats aren’t going to wow you. As a rookie, he appeared in 16 games with five starts. That includes three postseason games. He ended his first season with 18 tackles including one stop that resulted in a loss of yardage. He has yet to log his first NFL sack.
With Davis, you have to look past the statistical production. He’s immovable by opposing offensive linemen. He creates pressure. He’s a space eater that takes on blocks and creates opportunities for his teammates to make plays.
The sacks and the numbers will come. We truly believe that. He’s still figuring out what he’s doing, There is obviously room for improvement, but he deserves a passing grade, one that still allows for growth.
Final grade: Above average: B+
