What They’re Saying About the Eagles

Here’s what the local and national media are saying about the Eagles this week.

In his latest all-Eagles mock draft, Jimmy Kempski has the Eagles selecting Memphis quarterback Paxton Lynch in the first round:

To begin, this will of course be a scenario in which the Eagles will have moved on from Sam Bradford, as I suspect they will. On Sunday, we went through the teams picking between 1-12 in the 2016 NFL Draft, and their likelihood of drafting a quarterback with their first round picks. If I were a betting man, one of the three top quarterback prospects (Cal’s Jared Goff, North Dakota State’s Carson Wentz, and Memphis’ Paxton Lynch) will make it to the Eagles at 13. Or perhaps a modest trade up that doesn’t require selling the farm can do the trick.

At 6’6, 230, Lynch obviously has outstanding size to see over the line of scrimmage. In addition to his aforementioned arm strength, he can also throttle it down and throw with touch. Coming from a smaller program like Memphis, and being something of a late riser, many are going to question Lynch’s feel for the game. I have no such concerns. It is actually a major strength in his overall game, in my opinion, which again, we detailed in our film breakdown of him in November.

Certainly, there are negatives too. Because he really came on so late in his college career, scouts will have wanted to see a larger body of work of sustained success. The possibility of being a “one-year wonder” will turn some teams off. Still, in my view, Lynch is clear first round talent with a lot of upside. With an Eagles coaching staff loaded with former quarterback coaches, Philly could be a good fit for Lynch. The Eagles could slow-play him, allowing a bridge quarterback to play in 2016 until Lynch is ready.

Geoff Mosher offers some insight into the personnel head search:

I’m told Eagles began search looking for a VP of personnel type to run scouting dept much like the title Tom Gamble held pre-firing.

— Geoff Mosher (@GeoffMosherNFL) January 31, 2016

Hunt, who is Steelers pro personnel coordinator, isn’t necessarily high enough on scouting chain to be a “VP” type and lead a department.

— Geoff Mosher (@GeoffMosherNFL) January 31, 2016

Doesn’t mean Eagles won’t hire him but appear to be looking for someone with more experience, someone who can decide fate of current staff.

— Geoff Mosher (@GeoffMosherNFL) January 31, 2016

Ideally, Eagles are looking for someone like Steelers director of fball admin Omar Khan, but I don’t think Steelers are letting Omar go.

— Geoff Mosher (@GeoffMosherNFL) January 31, 2016

In his latest NFL notes, which included a look at Doug Pederson‘s approach, Albert Breer offers this on former Eagles’ DC Sean McDermott.

The Bucs ultimately went with Dirk Koetter, but here’s one to file away:Panthers defensive coordinator Sean McDermott interviewed very, very well there. He came prepared — despite having to juggle all his responsibilities of coaching in the playoffs — and impressed everyone. And word of these sorts of things usually gets around, so it’s fair to expect that with a strong 2016, McDermott will be at the very top of 2017 search lists, the same way Adam Gase was in that position during this past cycle.

Tommy Lawlor offers some observations from the Senior Bowl:

Wentz was terrific, on and off the field. He was easily the best quarterback on the field. There were some cold, windy days in Mobile, but Wentz had the arm strength to still throw perfect passes all over the field. He had good mechanics and looked the part of an NFL quarterback. It was kind of funny to see him at 6-6 and 233 pounds, while the quarterback from USC (Cody Kessler), was the undersized, scrappy player at only 6-1 and 224 pounds. Wentz is a terrific athlete and also has a real presence about him. He wasn’t nervous about being in the spotlight and carried himself like he should be there right with the guys from Alabama, USC and Penn State.

I’m sure the Eagles liked what they saw. Unfortunately, other teams will feel the same way. There is no guarantee that Wentz makes it outside the top 10.

If the Eagles work out a deal withSam Bradford and the focus turns from quarterback to offensive line, they could target Cody Whitehair from Kansas State. He played left tackle for the Wildcats, but projects more to guard in the NFL. Whitehair played guard in Mobile and was outstanding. He has the right combination of size and athletic ability to be a good starting lineman in the NFL. Whitehair is very smart and technically sound. He is the kind of player who would have a chance to push for a starting role as a rookie.

 

Andrew Garda of Sports on Earth lists Temple d-lineman Matt Ioannidis as one of his “risers” thanks to an impressive Senior Bowl week.

Ioannides had a consistently strong week, catching the eye with a nice burst off the snap and the ability to consistently disrupt on passing downs. I’m really excited to see what he does this weekend during the game, when things are live.

Ioannides stood out from among a very solid group of defensive lineman on the North side, including Ohio State’s Adolphus Washington, Penn State’s Carl Nassib and Austin Johnson. That he was able to get our attention among that group is a great sign that there is something there. Certainly it’s worth going back to the tape after this week and seeing what translates to game tape and delve into why some of what he did this week didn’t.

Ioannides also has some versatility to him and might be able to kick inside to tackle if need be. That’s always important in today’s NFL.