Okay, time in! Just in case you missed the announcement, we took a break from all the NFL Draft talk. It was beginning to become a tad redundant and overwhelming. We discussed the coming selection meeting and the Philadelphia Eagles’ draft needs and prospects they hosted on Top 30 visits until we were blue in the face. That isn’t an exaggeration.
We’ve recharged a bit, so here we are, crafting another mock draft. We’ve lost count of how many this is.
So, attempting to be creative, we asked ourselves a few questions. What if we changed our priorities? What happens if we prioritize those positions that the Birds probably wouldn’t during the early rounds? What if we pieced together the most un-Eagle-like strategy?
We tried it, and honestly, we like the result. We took ‘creative liberties’ to the extreme. We’ve pieced together a damn fine 2025 Eagles eight-man draft class.
Round 1, Pick 32 – Matthew Golden, WR, Texas Longhorns
Travis Hunter (if you’re still labeling him as a wideout), Tetairoa McMillan (Arizona), Luther Burden III (Missouri), and Emeka Egbuka (Ohio State) were the first four wide receivers selected in our mock draft. That made Matthew Golden available at 32.
We’re not sure if things would actually work out that way on night one, but hell, we’ll take it!
Some say defense is luxury. We’ve never agreed with that, and after the most recent Super Bowl we’d double down and say it isn’t. Still, adding a speedster like this to the offense Philly already has makes us feel like 35 points per game would be the floor.
Round 2, Pick 64 – Mason Taylor, tight end, LSU Tigers
The son of Pro Football Hall of Famer Jason Taylor, this Bayou Bengal could ease the stress of seeing Dallas Goedert depart if Philly moved on from their current TE1.
This six-foot-five, 251-pound matchup nightmare is too speedy for many linebackers and too big of a load for slot corners and safeties who possess cover skills. In his final season at LSU, he appeared in 12 games and hauled in 55 receptions, resulting in 546 yards and two trips to the end zone.
Round 3, Pick 96 – Lathan Ransom, safety, Ohio State
As soon as we said we wanted to ‘change Philly’s priorities’ in this mock draft, the goal became taking a safety in Round 1, but we missed out on Malaki Starks (Georgia and Nick Emmanwori as both landed elsewhere.
That being said, maybe it makes sense for Philly to take a safety to close out Round 3. Maybe some agree with that, but we like Lathan Ransom’s potential.
Both he and Andrew Mukuba were available. The latter lacks something as a run defender. Ransom, at times, seems to lack elite traits, but he does so many things well that it may not seem like it.
Round 4, Pick 134 – Jalen Travis, OT, Iowa State Cyclones
We’ve completely gone off the rails here, huh? Philly takes its first offensive tackle in Round 4? Sound the alarm. We’ve officially lost our grip on reality.
While we know the Birds would never take this long to address the needs of the offensive line, they get lucky landing Jalen Travis here.
After spending four years at Princeton, he added another at Iowa State and earned a Senior Bowl invitation. At six-foot-eight and 339 pounds he’s a large tackle who could eventually take over for Lane Johnson. He’s also someone who could be moved inside to play guard early.
Round 5, Pick 161 (from Texans) – Jaylin Smith, cornerback,
Smith was someone Philly met with for a Top 30 visit and is someone they are interested in. He’s a candidate for the backup slot cornerback position standing at five-foot-ten and weighing in at 187 pounds.
His senior year was one of quality as he notched 58 tackles and two interceptions. That earned him Third-Team All-Big Ten honors, not a bad showing for the former USC Trojan standout.
Round 5, Pick 164 (from Lions via Browns) – Ty Robinson, defensive tackle, Nebraska Cornhuskers
While Minnesota’s Jah Joyner is impressive, he lacks physicality as a run defender, which won’t endear him to Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio. For that reason, we select Ty Robinson.
Another Third-Team All-Big Ten nod, this young man helped himself with a nice NFL Combine workout. He notched 37 tackles and seven sacks. He plays to the whistle and is a hard worker, and that has already endeared him to several scouts and coaching staffs.
Round 5, Pick 165 (from Commanders) – Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins, EDGE, Georgia Bulldogs
What the heck? Why not add to the Philly Dawgs? This is one of those guys who will go hunt. He notched three sacks, an additional QB hit, 15 hurries, and three pass breakups on 236 pass rush snaps last season per Pro Football Focus.
Round 5, Pick 168 – Connor Colby, guard, Iowa Hawkeyes
He isn’t perfect. He lunges a lot, but raw prospects like this are why every NFL team employs assistant coaches. Philly is home to the best O-line coach in the business. Connor Colby is a six-foot-six, 310-pound monster we more than trust in Jeff Stoutland’s hands.