Eagles rookie linebacker Myke Tavarres is versatile and athletic

The Eagles signed undrafted rookie free agent Myke Tavarres shortly after the 2016 NFL Draft. Philadelphia showed significant interest in Tavarres by giving him the second most guaranteed money of any undrafted player in the NFL this year. In order to learn more about the new Eagles linebacker, I reached out to Emory Hunt (@FBallGameplan) of Football Gameplan.

1) What are his strengths?

"Extremely versatile and athletic. Can rush the passer, chase down away runs and can drop back in zone effectively. Also returned kicks at UIW."

2) What are his weaknesses?

"Not overly stout at the point of attack and will have to be protected by DL if playing inside."

3) Were you surprised that he went undrafted?

"Absolutely! He had an outstanding career at UIW along with a very good week at the NFLPA Bowl."

4) Which 4-3 linebacker position is he best suited to play?

"He can play all 3, but would be BEST suited to play WILL."

5) How do you see his NFL career playing out?

"I think if given a real opportunity, he can be a solid starter that will be on the cusp of a pro bowl player."

6) Do you have an NFL comp for him?

"Alec Ogletree - Rams"

I also reached out to Incarnate Word head coach Larry Kennan. Here's what he had to say about his former player.

"Myke's strengths are his tremendous passion for the game and his ability rush the passer and chase plays down because of great work ethic. He has not done much pass coverage and if they intend to use him at that he will need work. I thought he would be drafted but somebody in his past seems to be talking bad about him as a person. We think he is a good person, with great work ethic and good character. He would play on the line of scrimmage where he can rush and chase plays down. He was great for us after he knew that we trusted him and he could trust us."

Here's what Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz had to say about Tavarres so far.

"He actually played on the line of scrimmage at Incarnate Word. That's the first time I ever thought I'd say that, [that] I'd use Incarnate Word in a press conference. I don't know a whole lot about college football, but they actually played a pretty good schedule last year. They played UTEP. Played Steven F. Austin. They played Sam Houston State. They played teams that I'm familiar with. You were able to see him. But he played at the line of scrimmage. He's 235 pounds. He's more going through the transition of moving back and being more coverage oriented. You know, I think that's going to best fit his skill set. He can run, made a lot of plays in college, but he also went from junior college, cup of coffee at Arkansas to Incarnate Word, so he's got a big jump ahead of him. But he has the skill set to be able to do it. That was another guy like Quentin [Gause] that we thought a lot of after the draft and tried our best to get him. We were lucky enough to get him signed."

Lastly, here are some clips of Tavarres being a beast.

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Thanks again to Emory and coach Kennan. Check out Emory's two latest book releases Football: A Love Story and What Did Football Teach You - available at FootballGameplan.com. Also check out his YouTube channel.