The worst draft takes about current Eagles

The 2020 NFL Draft is almost here. The takes have been made and recorded for posterity, just as they have always been. Unless you deleted your work because you got fired for being a creep.

Before we look forward to tomorrow’s draft, let’s look back at some bad takes, either in part or in whole, of current Eagles.

Jason Kelce

There aren’t many draft takes on late round centers, so we shall to go the NFL.com profile:

Kelce has the mobility and mentality to make it as a reserve center in the NFL. However, does not have the size or power to project as a starter.

Power has been the knock on Kelce in the past but yeah I think he did good enough.

Fletcher Cox

I’ve always liked when a scouting report for a top prospect compares the player to a pro player, and the pro player is nothing special. For example here is a scouting report of Baker Mayfield that both gives him a great grade and compares him to Case Keenum. Those are mutually exclusive, either the guy is worth being the top pick or he’s a journeyman backup. (The funny thing is the jury is still out on which of those two sides he will land on!)

It’s hard to find a bad scouting report for Fletcher Cox, but I did find this:

Cox compares favorably to Jason Jones of the Seattle Seahawks

Jones had just signed a one year prove it deal with Seattle after four solid but unspectacular seasons in Tennessee. For, say, a mid round pick, that would be a nice comparison. For a guy who was expected, and did, go in the top half of the first round, it’s silly.

Rasul Douglas

This one cracked me up. From PFF:

Will be coveted by both zone-heavy and man-heavy defensive schemes.

So are they saying here that Douglas could play zone well enough that if you played a lot of zone you would want him, and that he could play man well enough that if you played a lot of man you would want him, but if you played a fairly even mix of it you wouldn’t want him? Or are they trying too hard to say that he would fit on any team? Not sure which version hurts my head more.

Team Grades

Let’s take a moment to look at some recent team grades.

2013

With his first pick, Kelly reached a little bit for a left tackle prospect with elite upside but little polish. Lane Johnson will have to prove he can destroy people one-on-one in the NFL for Kelly’s system to work.

Zach Ertz was a nice pick in the second round, but whether he can excel in Kelly’s offense without strong blocking ability is an open question.

These are two of the best picks in Eagles history. Neither Johnson nor Ertz were the top pick at their position, they’re top players at their position.

2014

Best Pick: I like third-round receiver Josh Huf. He is a guy who will come in and know the offense, having played in it at Oregon.

Questionable move: Waiting until the fourth round to address corner. I like the guy they took there in Jaylen Watkins, so that could work out.

Third-day gem: Fifth-round defensive tackle Taylor Hart will add some depth to the defensive. He was a productive player at Oregon and Chip Kelly knows him well.

Analysis: The Eagles passed on a receiver in the first round to take pass rusher Marcus Smith because the pass rushers were a thin group. That made sense. They did take two receivers in round two and three to make it work.

Grade: B+

(Huf is their error, not mine.)

One day someone should write a book about the Chip Kelly era (title it Where Eagles Dared, you’re welcome), and the 2014 draft will need its own chapter just for everything leading up to it. The draft itself was one of the worst Eagles drafts of the Lurie era: Jordan Matthews was okay, and Beau Allen was good value in the 7th, but that’s it.

2015

Best pick: Rowe - Getting Rowe at No. 47 was a nice value. He has a chance to make a big impact for the Eagles.

Questionable pick: Hicks - Maybe Hicks will take over Mychal Kendricks’ job, but the third round seemed a round or two too early.

Flip them around and they’re pretty spot on!

2016

Grade: C+

This draft had the lowest grade listed. All it got them a franchise QB in Carson Wentz, two starters in the Super Bowl in Jalen Mills and Halapoulivaati Vaitai, another who is now a starter in Isaac Seumalo. Great draft.

2017:

Grade: A-

In the second round, Philly got a first-round value in Sidney Jones, who might have to half-redshirt the year as he recovers from injury but will be a good corner down the road. Rasul Douglas is another long corner who will be on the field right away.

Mack Hollins is very good downfield receiver, and a very good special-teamer as well. That’s the prototypical fourth-round pick. He and Shelton Gibson (fifth round) add receiver depth. Pumphrey’s electric with the ball, not unlike veteran Darren Sproles (though not as thick and powerful). Elijah Qualls was a fine selection in the seventh round.

Half these guys are already off the roster and it’s quite possible that none of them will be on it when the season starts.

Alright, back to the players.

Nate Sudfeld

The worst time to rate QBs is before their final season. Remember how Matt Barkley was supposed to be a top pick? Well, prior to the 2015 season Fox Sports ranked Sudfeld the third best QB in the 2016 draft behind Connor Cook and Christian Hackenberg. At that time they could only consider seniors, but they did have him as the 26th best prospect. He went 187th overall and was the 11th QB taken.

Josh Sweat

It is possible that in a few years we’ll look back on the Sweat selection as a steal, but in 2018 he was called one by USA Today’s Draft Wire. Aside from a QB, if you’re going to call a guy a steal immediately after the draft he should be a contributor in his rookie year. Sweat played 68 defensive snaps in 2018.

And now, my favorites.

Carson Wentz

The one you have been waiting for, but stick around because there is an even better one to finish this off. There are so, so many bad takes on Wentz, collecting them was my hobby in 2016. The thing to remember about Wentz takes is that the legitimate, respectable draft analysts generally liked him. The hottest takes were generally by people trying to make a name for themselves or by people who shouldn’t be taken seriously. The people who were touting Vernon Adams as better than Wentz were not the top minds in the field.

But holy crap were they bad, but let’s take a trip down memory lane, because it’s the only place we can go together in a group at the moment.

Emory Hunt: 4th round grade, 12th best QB

I’ll give him this: it was a funny line.

Honest question: do you even football?

No.

Matthews and Wentz became BFFs off the field, Ertz and Wentz on the field.

Well he was right about Goff. Give him that.

Sure, here you go:

NFL comparison: Jake Locker

How about different bust:

NFL Comparison: Blake Bortles

I even found one from December 2015:

If a team in the draft is looking for a day one starter, Wentz isn’t your guy.

These are bad but the worst Wentz takes were by the Rams and the Browns, who had the chance to take Wentz and didn’t.

But the worst take of any curent Eagle I could find was not of Carson Wentz.

JJ Arcega-Whiteside

For singular take, this can not be topped. This is too good to be true.

J.J. Arcega-Whiteside Is NFL Draft’s Biggest Hidden Gem

I can write with a fair amount of confidence that Arcega-Whiteside will be a better NFL wideout than Metcalf, who will all but certainly be drafted well before him.

As we all know, DK Metcalf was excellent last year. He was also taken 7 picks after Arcega-Whiteside.