With under three weeks to go until the 2025 NFL Draft, RB reacts to all of the latest expert opinions for the Eagles first round draft pick. Will Howie Roseman stay put at 32, move up, or trade out? Will the Eagles go with their traditional philosophy or spice things up again like they did last year? The Eagles are on an unprecedented run of draft success over the past several years and are looking to continue the pattern! Today, RB discusses all of this and more!
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00:00The Eagles have crushed it in the draft over the last several years, and although they're
00:05fresh off a Super Bowl win, Howie Roseman is not satisfied.
00:09He has a bunch of picks to play with, and he's trying to build a dynasty, and today
00:14we get some good insight into where the Eagles are probably going in round one.
00:18But the question is, is it the right decision?
00:21We'll talk about what the experts are saying in a whole bunch more.
00:24Welcome into A to Z Philly, I'm RB, do me a favor, like this video, go down below, hit
00:28that subscribe button, appreciate everybody staying tapped in for the offseason, and man,
00:34doesn't it feel good to be Super Bowl champions?
00:37Well, I'll tell you who doesn't feel good.
00:39We'll start it off with one of our rival head coaches, Brian Dayball.
00:44Here's an Eagles fan just completely pissing him off.
00:50Brian Dayball gets hit with a go birds.
00:52I mean, you just got to give it up to Eagle fans, man, the best in the world.
00:57Speaking of the Giants, though, they are scheduled to have a visit for Abdul Carter.
01:02He had breakfast with Brian Dayball at State College PA this weekend.
01:07I'll tell you what, man, really hoping that Abdul Carter does not land with the New York
01:12Giants.
01:13I hope they get a quarterback.
01:14Hope Carter goes at number two, because honestly, this guy's going to be a wrecker, man.
01:18I don't want to see him in the division.
01:20We've had to deal with Micah Parsons, even though the Cowboys are irrelevant.
01:23Let's keep Abdul Carter away from the New York Giants.
01:27Plus, he's a lifelong Eagles fan.
01:28You think he really wants to put on that ugly blue?
01:31No, he does not.
01:32Speaking of the defensive line, though, what do you guys think about this trade?
01:36This is a mock trade proposed by NFL trade rumors.
01:39Eagles get a six round pick in 26 in exchange for Bryce Huff.
01:44Would you do this deal?
01:45A lot of people are quick to say yes, but honestly, what is a six round pick doing for
01:49the Eagles that already have a plethora of trade capital and draft capital and things
01:54like that?
01:55Like, really, what is a six round pick going to do?
01:57I'm not saying that Bryce Huff is going to revive his career.
02:00I'm not saying he's worth the contract.
02:01And if you can get off the money, sure, I get it.
02:04I understand it.
02:05But the likelihood of him getting better in year two under Vic Fangio and in a system
02:09where I'm not going to say the pressure is off, but now you've won the Super Bowl.
02:13You have all these talented young guys.
02:15The lights are not going to be on Bryce Huff all the time.
02:18The bright lights are not going to be projected on him.
02:21And he did start to build up some momentum at the end of the season until he got injured
02:25for a second time.
02:26So I mean, he might get a little bit better.
02:28He might.
02:29Would you get rid of him for a six round pick?
02:31I think it all depends on the contract situation, but give me your thoughts down below.
02:35All right, man, let's jump into the NFL draft stuff.
02:40Shout out to Dave Zangaro.
02:41He compiled once again all of the experts opinions in terms of where the Eagles are
02:46going to go in round number one.
02:48I want to preface this with two quick things.
02:50Number one, I still don't think it's likely that how he stays at 32.
02:54I could see him trading up using all these draft picks that they have the next two years
02:58to get an impact player, or I could also see him trading back, getting more picks and just
03:03continuing to build that way.
03:05They have a couple needs, but drafting at the end of the first round is completely different
03:10than being like top 10, top 15.
03:13Your needs, your desires, like your whole strategy changes and how he's just not likely
03:18to stay at 32, in my opinion.
03:20But let's say he does.
03:22The other thing I want to say is you got to take everything into consideration.
03:27Where had the Eagles gone historically?
03:30What is their philosophy?
03:31It is starting up front, building in the trenches.
03:34And I know people are going to go back to last year.
03:36Last year was different.
03:37You were coming off the biggest collapse in NFL history, and you needed an impact player
03:42on the defense.
03:44You absolutely needed one.
03:45And Howie sat where they were, and Quinion fell into his lap.
03:48Right?
03:49Then he traded up, got the gene.
03:50It was a masterclass, but I think we're kind of reverting back to the normal strategy of
03:56Howie Roseman, and that's, all right, if the impact player is not there, I'm not going
04:01to force it.
04:02Right?
04:03Let me go with my gut, what usually works for this team, and also right now, it's kind
04:06of a need as well.
04:07So where are the Eagles going in round one if they stay at 32 or if they trade up?
04:14I think they're most likely going in the trenches, whether that's offensive line or defensive
04:17line.
04:18There's two guys you got to keep your eyes on, which we'll get to here in a few minutes.
04:22But let's start it off with Mason Cameron of PFF.
04:26He has the Eagles trading up and taking Donovan Ezraku.
04:30And through my draft research so far, this is one of the favorite guys on my list.
04:35I like Donovan Ezraku, not only because he's from South Jersey, but he is absolutely explosive.
04:41He plays with a lot of aggression, and honestly, I mean, the production's there, right?
04:46The numbers jump off the sheet.
04:47He had 16 and a half sacks last year, he had 80 tackles, but he just feels like a guy that
04:52has the intangibles.
04:54He's really good at shedding blocks, he's a finesse player, and he just finds ways to
04:59get to the quarterback that are, you know, not always traditional.
05:02Like he just has a real good eye for the game.
05:04With his type of play and his attitude, I think it would just fit Philadelphia perfectly,
05:09and he's probably a lifelong Eagles fan as well.
05:12So I really like Donovan Ezraku, but I do agree with Mason Cameron, the Eagles would
05:16have to trade up to get Ezraku.
05:19I don't think he will be there at the end of the first round.
05:21Let me know what you think about him down below.
05:24As Dave says here, the Boston College standout charted well in both pass rush win rate and
05:29run stop rate, making him an ideal option to become the next great edge rusher to wear
05:34Kelly Green.
05:35The next guy is Malachi Starks, and we already talked about him.
05:39Malachi Starks is here at 32 according to Nick Baumgardner of The Athletic.
05:45I disagree.
05:46I think Malachi Starks will have to be a guy you trade up to get.
05:49I don't see him getting past Detroit, and I think maybe in that 25-26 range, if you
05:55were to trade up and get him, that's how I could see that playing out.
05:59If Vic Fangio gives Howie Roseman the intel and says, hey, this is a perfect fit for our
06:04defense, he can have the rookie impact that Quinn Yon and Cooper had.
06:09We talked about how smart he is, high IQ, explosive.
06:13He's a versatile weapon.
06:15You can play him probably at corner if you need to.
06:17I like Malachi Starks.
06:18I think he has the potential to have one of the biggest impacts in this draft.
06:22He's a really good tackler, which Vic Fangio loves.
06:25Good run defender, good in-man coverage, zone coverage.
06:28He can do everything.
06:29Great size, athleticism.
06:30I really like his game.
06:32But as Dave Zangaro says here, the Eagles have never taken a safety in the first round.
06:36Okay, we got it out of the way.
06:38It doesn't mean the Eagles won't take a safety.
06:40Exactly, just like last year.
06:41Now again, you look at the safety position, definitely one of need right now.
06:45I think it's higher on the priority list, but Howie Roseman did warn us to be patient,
06:50relax.
06:51The offseason takes a while, and there's a lot more options out there, and that's what
06:54he's been saying the whole time.
06:56Lance Zerline of NFL.com has the Eagles trading out of 32.
07:00I think that's realistic.
07:01Tom Fornelli has the Eagles taking a wide receiver, Amika Ibuka from Ohio State.
07:08I don't think there's any world in which they take a wide receiver at 32.
07:12Let me know if you disagree.
07:13So I'm not even going to look at that.
07:15But we get to the final two guys here, and ladies and gentlemen, I want you to start
07:19keeping your eyes peeled for these two players.
07:22One is Josh Connerly Jr.
07:24That's who Nate Tice and Charles McDonald of Yahoo has the Eagles taken.
07:28We talked about him last week.
07:30When I think about Josh Connerly and the more I watch him, he just feels like a guy who's
07:34going to grade out as an Eagle for the next 10 to 15 years.
07:38He feels like another Lane Johnson.
07:40Now, I'm not trying to compare him, but he has the huge upper body strength.
07:45Actually, they're almost the exact same.
07:47I think he's 6'6", 311 pounds, and he's got to work on some technique things here early
07:53in his career.
07:54But if they can just put a little more weight on him and fix a few technique things, which
07:59obviously you have the master professor in Jeff Statlin, Josh Connerly Jr. is a guy who
08:03can learn and grow over these next couple years and then take over for Lane Johnson
08:08when he's ready to go.
08:09Now, they're also saying, like I said before, that Josh Connerly can project the move into
08:13guard.
08:14And if you don't want to stash him for the next three years while Lane Johnson, who just
08:18signed a one-year extension, is going to be here for, right?
08:22And let's be honest, Lane could also get hurt, too.
08:24He's now in his mid-30s.
08:25You never know.
08:26But I think Josh Connerly Jr. would be a great pick because he can slide into guard and give
08:31more competition to Tyler Steen and Kenyon Green.
08:34I mean, ask yourself right now, right?
08:36Mekhi Beckton was an amazing story.
08:38But if you look at the Eagles guard situation right now, are you 100% confident in Tyler
08:44Steen and Kenyon Green?
08:45I think the answer is no.
08:47And I think Josh Connerly can be another Landon Dickerson, another Cam Juergens, where you
08:52bring him in, you know what their future is going to be, but you move them inside and
08:57you have them play another position.
08:58They're versatile.
08:59He says a pick like this definitely follows the logic.
09:02Johnson is very open to training his eventual replacement, which the Eagles have done with
09:06others in the past.
09:08This wouldn't be a very popular pick, but Connerly has the traits that makes you think
09:12he can be a good right guard in the short term and a long-term replacement for Lane
09:16Johnson.
09:17So like he said, and as it has always been, it's not going to be a popular pick.
09:23Oh, rah, rah for Josh Connerly.
09:25But the Eagles are at the end of the first round.
09:28They have to invest in the future and they're going to need help in the trenches eventually,
09:33whether it's here or on the defensive line.
09:35And it just feels like a very Howie Roseman pick.
09:38So keep your eyes on Josh Connerly.
09:40A lot of the experts are talking offensive line.
09:43Now the other guy who we haven't really talked much about is Gray Zabel out of North Dakota
09:48State.
09:49And we all know the history of North Dakota State, Koff, Koff, Carson Wentz.
09:53But Gray Zabel is an absolute freak in nature.
09:56When you look at this guy, he plays every position on the offensive line or has other
10:01than center.
10:02He has a ton of experience and I mean, he's got a great range of motion as well.
10:07He is solid play strength.
10:09He seals blocks well.
10:10He's good at pulling over to the other side of the line.
10:13And I mean, he's just, he's a very good player.
10:15He's a freak of nature and he just, he gets his hands dirty.
10:19And I think going to the school that he went to the kind of being overlooked a bit and
10:24stay in there this year so he could play with his brother.
10:27He just has attributes that I think Philly would love.
10:29And as Dave Zangaro says here, he played every position on the line.
10:33Like we said, he seems like most evaluators see him as a guard in the NFL, but doesn't
10:37mean that he can't be a tackle or be able to fill in in a pinch.
10:41It could be a plug and play starting guard for the Eagles.
10:44That would mean immediate competition at the right guard spot.
10:48Like I said, you lost Mekhi Becton, you didn't want to, but you had to.
10:52And Gray Zabel might be a guy that can slide right in and be an impact player.
10:57And I think the Eagles are going to go in the trenches.
10:59I think all of this is kind of foreshadowing that and whether it's, you know, a D tackle,
11:05an edge or an offensive lineman, I think it's the right decision, the right way to go.
11:09And I'm not going to be mad if they do it.
11:11And even though it won't be the sexy pick, it'll be the right one.
11:13So those are my thoughts.
11:15Give me all of yours down below in the comment section.
11:18How do you feel about the Eagles draft?
11:21What do you want them to do in the first round?
11:22Appreciate everybody for tapping in as always.
11:25Be sure to like comment and subscribe, and I'll catch you on the next one.