Mock Draft SZN is officially in full swing these days!
Everyone has a mock draft they tout as being accurate. There was one from a member of the PFF team yesterday that had the Eagles taking Justin Fields at 6. So, not every mock draft is good, or even worthwhile to analyze. But Daniel Jeremiah’s will always stick out to me given what he said about the Eagles draft day strategy last year:
“The Eagles really wanted speed. Reagor provides that. I just couldn’t pass up my 14th rated player (Justin Jefferson) for my 56th player (Reagor). It’ll be fascinating to follow both of their career.”
So yeah, I trust the mock drafts of Daniel Jeremiah. Here is his official mock draft 2.0, released earlier today:
Mock Draft 2.0https://t.co/e6nSjBoKzJ
— Daniel Jeremiah (@MoveTheSticks) February 16, 2021
The reactions to Roger Goodell calling Kyle Pitts name at 6 will be top tier. I truly hope it happens just to experience the shock and awe on Eagles fans faces. To have Devonta Smith and Jaylen Waddle on the board, and take Pitts might kill a few people in this city.
There is nothing wrong with Pitts. He is a unique hybrid of tight end and wide receiver that caused match-up nightmares in the SEC during his time at Florida. He’s too fast for linebackers and too big for cornerbacks. If I could compare him to an athlete, he reminds me of Kamaru Usman: a combination of speed and power that can’t be duplicated by others squaring off with him.
There is also the issue that Zach Ertz is almost surely gone this offseason. The once deep tight end room in Philly no longer seems to be the case. Richard Rodgers was one of the few gems of the 2020 season, and they obviously have Dallas Goedert. But Ertz was a certain level of reliable fans have come to be accustom to and his lack of production clearly hurt the offense. They would love to have a similar level of production in Pitts.
Here’s the interesting twist in this new mock draft: Devonta Smith drops all the way down to 14…and lands with the Vikings. I am not a Howie Roseman supporter, quite the opposite actually. But if that scenario plays out just a year removed from the Jefferson/Reagor sage, NovaCare Complex might be burnt to the ground.
Here’s the thing about taking Kyle Pitts. Is it the wrong move to make? Probably not! You take the best player available and he could be that. But it will leave another hole open on this roster, and that’s the issue. The Eagles have constructed a roster so poorly that no matter what they do, it will be scrutinized as the wrong move because for every hole they plug, four more burst open with water. Take a receiver, have a turnstile again at corner. Take a linebacker, leave the offense barren again. There is no “right move” when there are this many holes to fill and only so many valuable draft picks to fill them in.