Why Did Eagles Move Down and Not Up?

Presumably the Eagles traded down to #36 because the 1^st round players they had been targeting were already off the board. I don’t think even Andy Reid would try to make the argument that they had their sights set on Kevin Kolb the entire time and intended on making him their very first pick of the 2007 draft.

 

So the question is why the Eagles didn’t trade UP to get the player/position they wanted rather than stand pat at #26 and miss out because teams ahead of them took their desired players. Certainly, Reid has shown a willingness to trade up in the first round to get the player they want, having done it with Jerome McDougle and Shawn Andrews. So what to make of their inactivity.

 

Sadly, we’ll likely never know since top management reveals internal workings and discussions as often as the Bush White House (in the first term, that is).

 

Having said that, here are my educated guesses.

 

1)      Miami LB Jon Beason and S Brandon Merriweather were the two players at the top of the Eagles’ board. They are also the two players taken immediately preceding the Eagles pick. Beason is a fast, Omar Gaither-sized LB (6 ft, 230 lbs) and Merriweather, of course, would have been B. Dawk’s heir apparent. It is conceivable that the Eagles figured one of the two would be available. What are the chances that Carolina AND New England would take both of these guys. Pretty good chances as it turned out. Not sure if Beason was actually under consideration since I’m not sure what a Gaither-clone would have gotten the Eagles, but the Merriweather pick being taken just under the noses makes this scenario plausible.

 

2)       Were the Eagles somehow spooked by having given up their 4^th round pick in the Stallworth trade  last year? If so, perhaps they wanted to move up to assure themselves of getting their player but couldn’t. Having already lost one 4^th round pick, I think they were reluctant to give up another mid round pick (a 3^rd?) to move up a couple of slots to assure themselves of a safety.

 

3)      Conversely, maybe they were willing to take any of several defensive players (Nelson, Griffin, Merriweather, Beason) but when none of them were available became focused on getting a mid rounder back to fill the Stallworth/4^th rounder hole and made up for it by dropping down from #26.

 

Of course, we’ll never know until Andy Reid, Tom Heckert, or Jeff Lurie publishes their tell all memoirs. But it is amazing to consider the vagaries of the NFL draft. It’s not enough to properly identify and evaluate talent. The other 32 teams impact your choices. You can only select the players that haven’t already been taken. Because New England took Brandon Merriweather immediately before the Eagles, they wind up with Kevin Kolb.