Eagles finally reveal jersey numbers for 2020 draft picks

With tomorrow marking three weeks since the 2020 NFL Draft began, the Philadelphia Eagles have finally gotten around to announcing jersey numbers for their 10 picks (still no word on their 13 undrafted rookie free agent signings, though). Here’s an entire overview, followed by some very important jersey number thoughts.

DRAFT PICKS

QB Jalen Hurts - 2

WR Jalen Reagor - 18

S K’Von Wallace - 42

LB Davion Taylor - 52

LB Shaun Bradley - 54

DE Casey Toohill - 56

OL Jack Driscoll - 63

OT Prince Tega Wanogho - 72

WR Quez Watkins - 80

WR John Hightower - 82

IMPORTANT #JERSEYNUMBERANALYTICS

• Hurts wore No. 2 at Alabama before transferring to Oklahoma and wearing No. 1. The last Eagles quarterback to wear No. 2 was technically Luis Perez, who spent about a month on last year’s offseason roster prior to the start of OTA practices. The last Eagles quarterback to actually wear No. 2 in a game was Matt Barkley. Let’s hope Hurts is better than Barkley.
• Reagor previously announced he’ll be wearing No. 18. I think it’s a good choice for him.
• I don’t love No. 42 for Wallace, though I can understand the thinking behind the selection. He wore No. 12 in college and No. 42 is about as close as he can get to replicating that look. The last the Eagles players to wear No. 42 were ... Andrew Sendejo, Chris Maragos, and Kurt Coleman.
• Taylor has his work cut out for him. The Eagles haven’t had a No. 52 who’s been with the team for more than one season since Jason Short from 2004 through 2006. The last six No. 52s: Zach Brown, Corey Nelson, Najee Goode, Brad Jones, Brian Rolle, and Daniel Te’o-Nesheim (RIP).
• Bradley getting No. 54 is a great get for a sixth-round pick. It was last worn by Kamu Grugier-Hill but it was most famously worn by Jeremiah Trotter. Taylor should’ve picked this over No. 52.
• Toohill is the first Eagles player to wear No. 56 since Chris Long. Good get for the No. 233 overall pick.
• No. 63 for Driscoll is interesting in that it makes me think he’ll end up being an interior offensive lineman. I could be off-base with that assumption but it doesn’t feel like a prime offensive tackle number.
• By contrast, No. 72 is a good get for PTW. He gets a number last worn by Halapoulivaati Vaitai and most famously worn by friend of BGN Tra Thomas.
• I just don’t like how No. 80 looks in the Eagles’ jersey font. Watkins had limited options to work with but this isn’t a great pick. The last Eagles wide receivers to wear No. 80: Marken Michel, Jordan Matthews (for his second and third stints in Philly), Markus Wheaton, Ronald Johnson, Kevin Curtis, Billy McMullen, James Thrash.
• No. 82 is good for Hightower. It’s been more of a tight end number for the Eagles for some time but Torrey Smith rocked it well in 2017. It was also once worn by the great Mike Quick.
• Shame on the Eagles for not announcing the UDFA jersey numbers with these. They’re delaying the annual #JerseyNumberAnalytics podcast that I’ll be doing with Benjamin Solak for BGN Radio. Stay tuned for that can’t-miss episode.