Ranking Eagles draft targets based on excitement level

For this article, I just a ton of mock drafts and tried to write down all the players the Eagles have selected or have traded up to select. Then, I ranked them based on what I would like to see on Thursday night. I enjoyed this exercise and hopefully you find it useful too! Obviously this doesn’t include all the players but it includes everyone I think the Eagles have a chance at, based on all of the mocks.

Tier 1 – Trade up/how on earth did we get him?

S Kyle Hamilton, Notre Dame: Possibly the best player in the entire class, Hamilton is 6’4 but runs like a smaller safety and has fantastic instincts. He will bring a playmaking element and can fly around the field and the safety position is becoming more and more important in the modern NFL. I would absolutely love to see Hamilton somehow end up on the Eagles.

CB Derek Stingley, LSU: Stingley has been discussed a lot due to some ‘lazy’ tape the past 2 years and the injury concerns… but the tape is outstanding. He has all the physical and athletic traits that a high level outside cornerback needs. He is at his best in man coverage, especially press man coverage, and has elite ball skills too. He is not as good in off coverage or in zone at this point, where he can have some issues with his technique, but he does have the athletic ability to be able to do it all.

EDGE Jermaine Johnson, Florida State: Johnson projects as a good starter who could potentially become an excellent starter. Johnson has excellent size and length and understands how to get to the quarterback with elite hand usage. I am slightly concerned by the average get-off. I think he is a clear 3-down starter who can also play the run.

Tier 2 – This would get me very excited

DT Jordan Davis, Georgia: Davis is probably the most fascinating player in the entire draft class. I’ll be totally honest, I don’t really know how to evaluate him considering his lack of snaps and it’s hard to project his future. He looks like an elite run defender with the athletic ability to be a good pass rusher too. I would absolutely love the Eagles to take a chance on Davis and I would always take a shot on athletic freaks because the upside is huge.

LB Devin Lloyd, Utah: Lloyd clearly looks like the best linebacker in this class but is he worth a mid-1st round pick? I think the Eagles have ignored this position for too long and that the Eagles need some serious talent at the position and I think Lloyd is the one linebacker who is worth a mid-1st. He looks the part, is very athletic and will bring physicality to a defense. The missed tackles are a concern but I think you have to hope you can coach that out of him.

WR Treylon Burks, Arkansas: Burks is one of the most fun I’ve had watching a prospect for a while. His film is unbelievable and the potential is incredibly high. He has a freakish combination of size and speed and can line up anywhere on the field. He can win in the short to intermediate game on over routes where he can use his size to box out defenders but he excels on deeper routes where corners have no chance if he gets a step on them. Some big guys have slow feet but Burks does not. He gets into his route quickly with a very explosive first few steps and can run by corners effortlessly. He also has great hands and is a huge threat in the red zone. Is he the finished article? No. Does he need to understand the nuances of route running better? Yes. But he can learn that stuff and you simply cannot teach the explosive traits that he has.

WR Jameson Williams, Alabama: Williams is one of the most explosive receivers I have studied the past few years. He will immediately dominate on vertical routes such as overs, posts and corners and will put up crazy numbers with an elite quarterback. He is not just a one trick pony and is very good at coming back to the ball and finding soft spots against zone coverage too. He will need to improve his play strength in order to compete against more physical cornerbacks, and does have a few too many concentration drops, but he should be a instant playmaker in the league.

CB Trent McDuffie, Washington: McDuffie is a top cornerback prospect who is better suited to a zone system that won’t ask him to play press man on a consistent basis. He showed he can play man, but is at his best in off coverage and zone where he can explode towards the football. He is an excellent athlete, a fluid mover and shows a great understanding of situational football. He does get overly physical with receivers on the outside due to his lack of height and his lack of ball production is concerning, especially as teams may target him with bigger receivers on jump balls on the outside.

CB Andrew Booth, Clemson: Booth Jr is an intriguing prospect as he profiles as someone who can do a bit of everything. He has an excellent feel for zone coverage and shows a good understanding of route concepts, receiver location and excellent eye discipline. He has also shown the…