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NFL Network draft guru Mike Mayock released his first pre-combine top 5 players lists over the weekend. Of course, as Eagles fans, we've got a few positions of special interest, most notably in the secondary. You could certainly make the argument that not one guy that was back there in 2012 deserves to keep his job heading into 2013.
Suffice to say, there will have to new blood and while some of that may very well come via free agency, the long term solutions have to come from the draft. So let's take a look at Mayock's top 5 corners and safeties.
| Rank | Cornerback | HT | WT |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dee Milliner, Alabama | 6-1 | 200 |
| 2 | Xavier Rhodes, Florida State | 6-2 | 215 |
| 3 | Johnthan Banks, Mississippi State | 6-2 | 185 |
| 4 | Desmond Trufant, Washington | 6-0 | 185 |
| 5 | Jordan Poyer, Oregon State | 6-0 | 190 |
It's interesting to compare this with Mel Kiper's top 5 corners because the 2 agree on the top 3, but Mel has Will Davis of Utah State and Logan Ryan of Rutgers as his #4 and #5.
For the Eagles, it's really all about how high they want to try to address this need. If they want Dee Milliner, he's probably a top 15 pick. Xavier Rhodes is almost certainly a first rounder and Johnthan Banks certainly could be one as well. I personally don't think I'd spent the #4 on any of these guys, so would the Eagles trade down from that spot to get one? How about trade up from their 2nd rounder?
Of course, they could also stand pat at that second round pick and probably have a pretty good shot at getting guys like Trufant or Poyer if they like them.
Related: Eagles mock draft central
Onto safeties.
| Rank | Safety | HT | WT |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kenny Vaccaro, Texas | 6-1 | 218 |
| 2 | Matt Elam, Florida | 5-10 | 206 |
| 3 | Jonathan Cyprien, Florida Int'l | 6-1 | 210 |
| 4 | Eric Reid, LSU | 6-2 | 208 |
| 5 | Zeke Motta, Notre Dame | 6-2 | 215 |
Mayock and Kiper agree on 3 safeties as well. Mel Kiper's top 5 includes the same guys at #1, 2 and 4. However, he has Tony Jefferson from Oklahoma and Phillip Thomas from Fresno State at 3 and 5.
Safety should be an interesting position to watch as the draft process goes on. Of this group, Vacarro appears to be the only consensus first rounder and even he could come off the board as late as the 20s. And while there's certainly a scenario where at least 3 of the top 4 go in the first, it's likely that the Eagles would have their pick of most of this list when they pick at the top of the 2md round.
So who on these lists are your personal favorites?