Would Eagles Trade Up For Evans?

There’s one Chip Kelly quote about wide receivers that we’re probably going to keep coming back to in the next month or so.

“There’s certain guys in our league that have both and that’s why they’re elite,” Kelly said at the owners meetings. “They have the size element of it, they also have the speed element of it. There’s a lot of different ways to do it.”

Kelly was talking about wide receivers’ ability to beat man coverage. His point was there are different ways to accomplish that task – size and speed. Possessing both traits makes for an ideal prospect.

Which brings us to some interesting buzz courtesy of Tony Pauline of Draft Insider. Pauline writes that Texas A&M’s Mike Evans is considered a consensus top-10 pick. That means the Eagles have no chance of landing him, right?

Well, not exactly.

Pauline writes that the Eagles are “very high” on Evans and “would consider trading up to grab him.”

It’s important to take everything with a grain of salt this time of year, but the trade-up question is one worth exploring. We know that the Eagles only have six picks and have several holes to fill (wide receiver, safety, OLB, OL depth, LB depth, CB depth). If the WR class is as loaded as everyone seems to think, the wise move might be to stay put.

Then again, if Kelly views Evans’ speed-size combination (6-5, ran a 4.53) as a significant factor in separating him from other receivers in the class, maybe the Eagles consider making a move. It’s worth noting that they could also offer compensation in the form of future picks.

Pauline also writes that Oregon State’s Brandin Cooks and USC’s Marqise Lee are high on the Eagles’ list.

We’re making our way through the wide receivers in our Draft Daily series and will get to Evans, Cooks and Lee in the coming days. Here’s a list of guys we’ve written about so far:

Indiana’s Cody Latimer
Penn State’s Allen Robinson
Mississippi’s Donte Moncrief