Andre Dillard, OT, 1st Round – already laid out why this was a great pick in another long-ass post a couple pages ago. TL;DR version is that he’s either the best or second-best Tackle prospect in the draft, he’s the best pass protector, and easily the best LT. There’s a video where OL coach Jeff Stoutland lays out just what Dillard does so well, and it’s really worth watching. He also fills a long-term need in looking for Jason Peters’ successor. That he fell to #22 thanks to an early run on DT and Edge Rushers was a gift from the football gods.
Miles Sanders, RB, 2nd Round – about the last thing I expected Howie to do was take a RB at #53. And as far as RB prospects went, I preferred Darrell Henderson and maybe even David Montgomery. But Sanders isn’t a bad choice, and it looks like the Eagles FO were really high on him. They’d have to be for Howie to pass over a Safety or DE for an RB. He has to work on his ball security and his pass protection, but he runs well, is elusive, and can catch. He compliments Jordan Howard well. At best, the Eagles have a long-term lead RB. At worst, he should fit well in an RBBC.
JJ Arcega-Whiteside, WR, 2nd Round – didn’t know anything about him coming in and I expected the Eagles to look for an Agholor replacement, like Campbell or Isabella, instead of a potential Alshon one. But Arcega-Whiteside has drawn a lot of hype as far as WRs go. He’s a downfield threat, has good hands, is a good route-runner, and another redzone threat to put alongside Alshon, Ertz, and Goedert. WR is another long-term need for the Eagles and, while Alshon, Agholor, and DJax are fine in the short-term, they needed to get younger there. Excellent decision. And Carson gets more weapons.
Shareef Miller, DE, 4th Round – another prospect I know nothing about, so not much for me to say here. Even without taking a prospect in a top DT/DE class, the Eagles are set up pretty well on the D-Line with Cox, Jernigan, Jackson, Graham, and Barnett. They did need a Chris Long replacement, though, so hopefully Miller develops into a solid rotational player.
Clayton Thorton, QB, 6th Round – at this point most picks are either depth signings or developmental prospects, so whatever. The Eagles value QB highly and Nate Sudfeld is a FA in 2020, so you need a guy who can be a potential #2 QB behind Carson. It makes sense.