They have long called the NFL Draft ‘a crap shoot’ and ‘an inexact science’. Both phrases seemingly direct us to different wavelengths. One implies study and reason are needed. The other suggests the Philadelphia Eagles and every other team’s success in pro football’s annual selection meeting comes down to a game of chance.
If they’re being honest, there’s seemingly wisdom and accuracy in both statements.
Think about Jalen Hurts, Jalen Carter, and Quinyon Mitchell for a few ticks. Philly made three of the best decisions in franchise history recently in acquiring all three of them.
Hurts and Carter were the choices in their respective drafts thanks to Howie Roseman and his staff doing their due diligence and research. They also went against the grain with both selections, albeit for different reasons.
Mitchell landing in the City of Brotherly Love was something else entirely. The Birds got lucky in that sense. No one believed he’d be available at the 22nd overall selection in 2024.
Maybe that’s the point we should make here. Rather than dissect possible ways NFL Drafts can unfold, perhaps we should spend our time tossing ideas back and forth about the guarantees.
There’s no way Howie Roseman is going to sit on his hands and wait on his turn to make a selection eight times. That theory is in play here with a recent write-up by our buddies at Sports Illustrated.
Howie Roseman and the Eagles trade up in a recent NFL Draft simulation.
With the 2025 NFL Draft less than a week away, we offer some awesome reading material to tickle your fancy:
2025 NFL All-Trades Mock Draft: 32 Deals for 32 Teams. In his scenario, Philly trades the 32nd selection to the Detroit Lions with picks 134 and 161. The Eagles receive the 28th pick as compensation.
The Birds take a defensive tackle, former Oregon Ducks standout Derrick Harmon. Here’s what Matt Verderame, the writer of this one, lists as his theory for making that selection:
“Nobody loves to take linemen more than Eagles general manager Howie Roseman. He does so again here in an effort to replace Milton Williams and lands Harmon, who will become an instant starter on the defensive interior alongside Jalen Carter. At Oregon, Harmon racked up 45 tackles and five sacks after three years with Michigan State.”
It’s hard to argue with theory. It satisfies two things we know to be true: Howie Roseman is aggressive, and as Verderame states adding depth to the trenches is always the first order of business.
Here are a few things to keep in mind about Harmon. He spent his first three years of eligibility with the Michigan State Spartans (2021-23) and tallied 71 total tackles, including seven tackles for loss. He also notched 3.5 sacks, two pass breakups, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery during 28 games.
He transferred to Oregon ahead of the most recent NCAA football season and pieced together his lone season of notable production, but what a season it was: 45 tackles, 11 TFLs, five sacks, four pass breakups, two forced fumbles, and two fumble recoveries.
At season’s end, he had earned Second-Team All-Big Ten honors. He could offer quality snaps as a three-technique as part of an even defensive front.