Dream scenarios for the Eagles entering the 2023 NFL Draft’s second night
Can the Philadelphia Eagles recapture the magic of Round 1 and shock the NFL again with two more unexpected draft additions?
It would be fair to say that the Philadelphia Eagles walked out of Round 1 as the winners of the 2023 NFL Draft so far. The reigning NFC Champions entered the night with the 10th and 30th overall selections and left with two of the draft’s top defensive prospects, and all they gave up was a fourth-round choice in 2024 to seal the deal and get it done.
Defensive tackle Jalen Carter and edge rusher Nolan Smith are both players who can contribute right away. Ahead of the draft, Carter was seen as a lock to be selected as one of the draft’s first three players taken. As you know, off-field issues threatened that. To make long stories shorter, the Eagles swooped in, traded up one spot, and landed their guy at the ninth selection. They believe Carter has the makings of a future NFL star, and we couldn’t agree more.
The 30th overall selection was equally surprising. Philadelphia got lucky. Edge rusher Nolan Smith, who some saw as a top-15 pick, fell to the Eagles at the first round’s conclusion.
Smith and Carter won back-to-back College Football National Championship games at Georgia University. Now, at the professional level, they hope, along with former teammates Jordan Davis and Nakobe Dean, 2022 Eagles draftees, the winning ways will continue.
Eagles Executive Vice President and General Manager Howie Roseman has given his team more than they could have dreamed of from just these two picks alone, but is there any magic left? Might there be more surprises? An investigation into tampering involving Jonathan Gannon led to the decision that Philly and the Arizona Cardinals would swap third-down selections. That means Philly moves from the 94th pick to the 66th in this draft. Zona also landed Philly’s fifth-round pick in 2024.
With new ammunition and a night of rest, might we see more of Howie’s magic? After seeing two dreams come true on night one we’re hoping for two more on Friday evening.