NFL Draft Results: Eagles select Zech McPhearson at pick No. 123

With the 123rd pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, the Philadelphia Eagles select ... Zech McPhearson, cornerback, Texas Tech!

The 23-year-old defender actually started his college football career at Penn State before transferring.

The Eagles had a huge need at corner and they got one early on Day 3. Given the barren state of his position, McPhearson is in a decent position to compete for a starting job as soon as his rookie season. The Eagles will be hoping that defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon, who has a track record of maximizing secondary players, can develop McPhearson into a quality defender.

For what it’s worth, McPhearson has graded out well by Pro Football Focus.

Here’s a scouting report via NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein:

Penn State transfer with two seasons as a starter at Texas Tech. McPhearson plays the position with good physicality in coverage, at the catch point and when it’s time to do his part in run support. His ball skills are on point and he does a good job of maintaining positioning once he’s there, but he has some issues anticipating route breaks and maintaining feel for the pattern from trail position in man coverage. He has decent play speed, but appears to lack the ups for jump-ball battles. He has the feet and competitiveness to potentially back up outside or inside and should compete for special teams reps early on.

College stats via Sports Reference:

Spider graph via Mockdraftable:

Grade the pick

Remaining Eagles draft picks

1 (10) - DeVonta Smith, WR, Alabama

2 (37) - Landon Dickerson, C, Alabama

3 (73) - Milton Williams, DT, Louisiana Tech

4 (123) - Zech McPhearson, CB, Texas Tech

5 (150)

6 (189)

6 (191)

6 (224)

6 (225)

7 (234)

7 (240)

Remaining Eagles needs

Cornerback

Linebacker

Safety

Offensive tackle

Defensive end

Wide receiver