Eagles scored in draft: Here's how they did it

[Geowhizzer]

The same guy who had Bunkley going 21.

he's just butt sore that the eagles messed up his mock.

Everybody messed up his mock. I don't think he got more than 2 picks right.

That sounds like mine.  Of course, I don't get paid for it.

[ice grillin you]

the only reason that friggin moron is downing he eagles draft is his incessant need to always be the exact opposite of the majority

[Drunkmasterflex]

Anybody who says that the Eagles had a bad draft by looking at it on paper they are absolutely insane or don't have any clue. 

[The BIGSTUD]

Didn't you hear? Winston Justice sucks now apparently. Reggie Bush created holes on his own to run through.

[PoopyfaceMcGee]

Reggie Bush created holes on his own to run through.

Well, he did do that plenty of times.  But he and LenDale usually had the benefit of a gaping hole to exploit.

[Diomedes]

TMQ makes the point that SOMEONE on USC was making the others look better.  Or even that they ALL made each other look better.  And that it can only result in disappointment for at least several of the teams that drafted from USC.  He included a few other similar college teams that produced several NFL drafted players.

Interesting point.

[Don Ho]

ESPN 2 NOW KIPER ON BIRDS

[QB Eagles]

Too bad we'll never know who the Eagles wanted badly but didn't get. I don't believe for a second that the Birds wanted Gaither as much as they wanted Bloom.

[The BIGSTUD]

The Eagles wanted someone badly?

[bowzer]

I think Kiper ended up giving us a  B right? 

But I don't think he gave any team an A did he?  I didn't watch the whole show cause it was pretty long and didn't hold my attention once they got past the NFC East. 

[Seabiscuit36]

ESPN 2 NOW KIPER ON BIRDS

did count dracula say anything interesting or new there don ho?

[NGM]

ESPN 2 NOW KIPER ON BIRDS

did count dracula say anything interesting or new there don ho?

Not at all really.  That Spielman guy is the one who actually spoke about the Eagles.  He was gushing over what they did.  As posted somewhere else Kiper gave the Eagles a B.

Cowboys B-
Gints C+
Skins C (or C-)

[SD_Eagle5]

Ray Diddy's take on our draft. Will just throw it in here since so many people are interested in his opinion:

Monday, May 1, 2006


A View From the Hall: Draft Evaluation

by Ray Didinger
Special to ComcastSportsNet.com

After a season in which so many things went wrong, the Eagles probably were due for a weekend when things broke their way and they surely did with the NFL draft. The Eagles went into this draft needing help and they got plenty.

I rated the Eagles' draft among the top four with Arizona, Cleveland and Denver. I'm including the trade for Javon Walker as part of the Broncos' weekend haul. If I had to give Andy Reid, Tom Heckert and company a grade, I'd say A-minus. I would have liked to see them do more to address the wide receiver position, but overall I thought they did a very good job.

Obviously, they were well prepared. They identified their areas of need and the players who fit those slots. It also was clear they had done their homework on what the other teams, especially those drafting ahead of them, would do. They were patient in the first round and landed the player they coveted, defensive tackle Brodrick Bunkley, at No. 14. They were aggressive later, trading up to get offensive tackle Winston Justice (39 overall), defensive end Chris Gocong (71) and guard Max Jean-Gilles (99).

They also were a little lucky because the Buffalo Bills shocked everyone by taking Ohio State safety Donte Whitner with the eighth overall pick. Most people had the Bills picking Bunkley, so when they passed on him that was surprising enough, but when they chose to stay at No. 8 and pick Whitner – a good player, but certainly a reach at that point – it was the start of a chain reaction that ended with Bunkley falling into the Eagles' laps.

The Bills could have shopped that eighth pick around, traded it for a mid-first round choice plus an additional pick in, say, the third round and still landed Whitner in the 13 to 18 range. I'm sure they had plenty of teams calling with offers. Why they chose to play it this way – who knows? – but it was the best thing that could have happened for the Eagles.

Once Bunkley slipped past eight, the odds were pretty good that he would fall out of the top 10. Baltimore and Cleveland both were looking for help on the defensive line. Two blue-chip tackles remained: Haloti Ngata of Oregon and Bunkley. The Ravens and Browns both were drafting ahead of the Eagles. Philly fans had to sweat out the next 30 minutes.

The Ravens took Ngata, the 6-5, 350-pounder, a classic nose tackle who will keep middle linebacker Ray Lewis happy by eating up two or three blockers on every play and allowing Lewis to do what he does best – fly to the football.

That meant only the Browns stood between the Eagles and the player they wanted. I was doing a WIP radio show with Glen Macnow from the Slack's Hoagie Shack in Voorhees, N.J. and the place was packed with Eagles fans. It was deathly quiet while everyone stared at the TV, watching the seconds tick down, waiting for the Browns to make their decision.

It reminded me of a scene from one of those old World War II movies, where the submarine is underwater and everyone aboard is sweating, waiting for the depth charges to hit. That's what it was like in Slack's on Saturday as the fans held their breath, waiting for the pick.

When Commissioner Paul Tagliabue walked to the podium in New York and announced the Browns had selected Kamerion Wimbley, the defensive end from Florida State, a huge cheer went up at Slack's. I suspect there was a similar cheer in the Eagles' draft room because it meant the Eagles had their man.

I didn't think there was anyway Bunkley would slip to the 14th spot, but he did, and the Eagles, playing it very smartly, acquired him without having to trade up. I like Bunkley very much. His style of play is an excellent fit for the Eagles' style of defense. At 6-3, 305-pounds, he combines power and quickness. He has surprising burst for a man of that size. He had nine sacks and 25 tackles for losses, a school record, last season.

One of the qualities I look for in a defensive tackle is the ability to stay on his feet. That may sound silly, but think about it: When you watch a play unfold, how many of the defensive linemen are on the ground? Last season with the Eagles, the answer was most of them.

But there are some defensive linemen who, either with superior balance or a sixth sense which allows them to feel where the blocks are coming from, always seem to be on their feet. And you have to be on your feet to make a play. When I watched Florida State last season, Bunkley was always on his feet and moving towards the football. I think he'll be a very effective pairing with Mike Patterson, last year's No. 1 pick at defensive tackle.

It has been said many times, but it can't be overstated, how much the Eagles were hurt last season by the lack of a pass rush, in particular a rush up the middle. Their inability to collapse the pocket allowed opposing quarterbacks to step up on every throw which (a) made it harder for the rushers coming off the edge, in particular Jevon Kearse, and (b) made it harder on the secondary because the passers had the nice lanes to throw through. Bunkley will make Jim Johnson's defense much stronger in that critical area.

The Eagles got terrific value with Justice at the 39th pick and Jean-Gilles at 99. I had each of those players rated very highly. I had Justice as my No. 2 offensive tackle behind D'Brickashaw Ferguson of Virginia, who went No. 4 overall to the New York Jets. I had Jean-Gilles as my No. 2 guard behind Davin Joseph of Oklahoma, who went 23rd overall to Tampa Bay.

Jean-Gilles, at 6-3, 355 pounds, was as good a drive blocker as I saw in college football last season. When the Eagles drafted him, it made me think Andy Reid might actually be serious about putting a few running plays in the offense this season because that's certainly Jean-Gilles strength. With the trade of Artis Hicks, Jean-Gilles could very well win a starting job as a rookie. He has that kind of ability.

One sleeper to keep in mind is fifth round pick Omar Gaither, the 6-1, 235-pound linebacker from Tennessee. He is a tough kid who plays hard all the time and plays with a lot of emotion. I see him as another Ike Reese, a low-round draft pick who helps out at linebacker and contributes immediately on special teams.

Overall, it was refreshing to see the Eagles fans finally have a weekend to cheer.

Ray Didinger is a football analyst for Comcast Sports Net and appears on "Post-Game Live" following every Eagles game. His latest book, "The Eagles Encyclopedia", is available in bookstores and on-line.
E-mail Ray Didinger

[hunt]

joe banner will be on csn's daily news live today if you want it check it out...public speaking is banner's specialty so i'm sure it will be worth watching.

[SunMo]

joe banner will be on csn's daily news live today if you want it check it out...public speaking is banner's specialty so i'm sure it will be worth watching.

actually, it will probably be one big suck-fest today since they had a good draft.