As long as the NFL continues to sit back and let Howie Roseman keep getting away with thievery in the NFL Draft, he's going to keep on taking advantage of their mistakes. The Philadelphia Eagles moved up one spot at the end of the 1st round of the 2025 NFL Draft to take Alabama linebacker Jihaad Campbell, adding another dynamic weapon to a defense that needed to reload just a little bit.
A couple of years ago, the Eagles took advantage of the fall of yet another SEC star defensive player when Jalen Carter fell into their laps on the defensive line. Now, they go away from the Georgia Bulldogs for just a moment and take another absolute dawg for Vic Fangio's defense in Jihaad Campbell.
Campbell was an edge rusher when he came to Alabama, but with how loaded the Crimson Tide have been at that position group, they moved him to the off-ball linebacker position to get him on the field. And it worked tremendously.
Vic Fangio gets another unique weapon for Eagles defense in Jihaad Campbell
The Eagles already made Zack Baun one of the highest paid linebackers in the league this offseason after his bid for NFL Defensive Player of the Year. Baun was obviously an incredible impact player for the Eagles, but now they've added another guy who is a unique weapon with speed, range, and pass rush abilities.
Zack Baun might have bee mis-cast as an EDGE coming out of Wisconsin, but Fangio found ways to maximize his talents within his defensive scheme. Fangio understands that you just allow these players to go out there and do what they do best.
My comp for Jihaad Campbell was Zach Baun lol pic.twitter.com/uQlyOXW87z
— Ted Nguyen (@FB_FilmAnalysis) April 25, 2025
Campbell will give the Eagles someone who can spy quarterbacks, play off the edge, play one-on-one in coverage, and just like Jalen Carter before him, he can absolutely outplay his NFL Draft status.
Campbell is going to be tasked with helping an Eagles defense that has lost some key pieces and isn't done reloading in the 2025 NFL Draft. Perhaps he can help give them some of what they were hoping for from Bryce Huff as a pass rusher on third downs while slotting next to Zack Baun in the base defense.