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Let's have a look at the last few picks of this year's haul.
First a corner in the 6th round, Rashad Barksdale from Albany.
He's very big for a corner at 6-2, 210 and may be a guy the Eagles move to safety. Clearly he's a project and is probably going to have to make the squad on special teams.
With their final pick the Eagles drafted a very intriguing player in Nate Ilaoa, FB Hawaii. He's listed as a FB, but played running back in school. He's a big, stout guy that stands at only 5-8 but weighs in at 248 lbs. He's very shifty and changes direction well for a guy so big and run with a low center of gravity that makes him difficult to tackle. He actually average 7.6 yards a carry, and ran a 4.6 40. That's not too fast for a RB, but not many RBs are 248 lbs. He's as big as a linebacker but he's faster.
Negatives: His frame is at maximum growth potential and, in order to increase his timed speed, he could stand to lose about 20 pounds of bulk. ... Bit of a "paint-by-numbers" type who does not do a great job of anticipating the blitz or bull rush and needs to be more alert to coverages; he tends to run right into those spots on the field. ... Showed better maturity as a sixth-year senior, but has run afoul of the coaching staff in the past due to weight control issues. ... The additional bulk prevents him from separating from defenders after the catch (has seen his weight steadily increase each year, to the point where he must be considered more of a fullback prospect than at tailback, due to a lack of timed speed to threaten past the second level). ... Could be quicker if he would stop using a roll-over step to get to his point of mesh. ... Has decent instincts choosing his rush lanes, but needs to be a bit more patient waiting for blocks to develop. ... Will run into spots at times and miss a cutback when he tries to get too fancy sliding down the line. ... Gets most of his success moving the chains back when he pounds the ball up the gut, but will get his feet caught in trash some (see 2006 Eastern Illinois and Purdue games). ... Has the power to drive through tackles when he keeps his pads low, but when he runs erect, he can be pushed back through the rush lanes; he struggles some to sidestep trash. ... Needs to be more protective of the ball running up the gut; too many of his fumbles have come when he gets popped from behind. ... Has the upper-body strength to secure the ball inside his body, but runs with the pigskin too loose and fails to distribute the ball away from the defenders (see 2006 Alabama, Purdue and Arizona State and 2005 Nevada and San Diego State games). ... Will make a determined effort as a blocker, but is limited by his short reach in attempts to extend and lock on to the bull rusher. ... Needs to move and slide his feet better and seems to be slow recognizing stunts and blitzes. ... Doesn't have the second-level quickness and fails to take good angles when looking to locate and neutralize linebackers as a cut blocker.
Compares To: Samkon Gado, Houston Texans (Liberty) -- Ilaoa is a between-the-tackles runner with good cutback and change-of-direction agility to turn the corner and bounce outside. He needs to improve his blocking technique, but with his short, squat frame, overall strength and short-area receiving skills, he could shift to fullback at the next level.
He's a guy that is likely going to have to slim down a bit to be really successful, but that's actually something the Eagles have done quite well with their players in the past few years. Shawn Andrews is the shining example of this as he was bigger than the Eagles wanted him to be, so they told him to lose weight and worked with him for an entire offseason to help him do so. He emerged this past year lighter, stronger, in better shape, and turned into arguably the best OG in the NFL.
At the very least, this Nate Ilaoa pick is very interesting.