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1996 Season 10-6, 2nd in NFC East 1997 Draft Choices Team Reporter John McMullen JMcmul1@aol.com Philadelphia Eagles The Eagles draft was exciting. Trading down the board in the first and second rounds to pick up extra middle round draft choices, Ray Rhodes must of liked watching all those years of Jimmy Johnson and Jerry Jones in Dallas. One thing is certain, ESPN will have a reporter in the Eagles war room next year. Maybe that’s what Rhodes’ ego needs. The results? a nearly disastrous first day followed by a solid second day. Nearly ever observer in the draft rated the Eagles first round selection of DE Jon Harris as the biggest reach in the first round. Mike Ditka also received harsh criticism for his selection of guard Chris Naoele at such an early stage at pick 10 but Naoele was clearly a first round talent. The same cannot be said of Harris, a very raw 6-6, 270 pound defensive end. Clearly the loss of William Fuller along with the team’s inability to pry Ferric Collons away from New England left Rhodes needing a defensive end in the worst way but Harris could have been had much later and if the Eagles didn’t like anyone else on the board at 25, the prudent thing would have been to trade down again. Rating a draft is hard and a crapshoot. Jon Harris might become a Pro Bowl player in a few years and Darrell Russell might be a flop with the Raiders so the key to a good rating in my estimation is did you get the player you wanted at the spot he was projected or lower. The Jon Harris pick is a bad one simply because the Eagles probably could have gotten him in the second round. There was some speculation that Green Bay might take Harris at 30 and that’s why the Eagles pulled the trigger but the bottom line is just because another team, even if they have a history of success, is about to make a major reach for a player you like doesn’t mean you have to. This is the second year in a row, Ray Rhodes has selected a player projected much lower in the first round and the critics will be out in full force so he better get used to it. Here is a rundown on the entire Eagles draft: Round 1 - Pick 25 (From Dallas) - Jon Harris - DE - Virginia - 6-7, 270 A major reach this early but does have impressive physical tolls including prototypical height, super long arms and an amazing wingspan. Is very raw and doesn’t look like he has natural football instincts. Doesn’t have the closing speed or explosion to be a dominant pass rusher so left end will be his spot. He has improved his strength but still is below average in that area but seems to have a good work ethic. Always hustles. Hopefully he will get in the weight room and improve his functional strength. His run defense leaves a lot to be desired as he often lets offensive lineman get under his pads and blow him off the ball. Harris also has poor lateral movement and quickness so he doesn’t run and chase that well. With his height he could become a factor at the line of scrimmage batting down passes. Rhodes has compared him to Ed "Too Tall" Jones. Summary: A huge reach who was the 9th rated defensive end at the National Scouting Combine behind such players as Mike Vrabel (pick 91 by Pittsburgh), Trevor Pryce (28 by Denver), Jason Taylor (73 by Miami) and Nathan Davis (32 by Miami). Clearly the team was spooked by losing William Fuller to San Diego and wanted a replacement but there is no way Harris will be ready to play in 1997. Look for the Eagles to sign a Chris Mims type to fill the gap until Harris hopefully develops. The worst thing about the pick is they moved down from 22 and let Dallas get a legitimate tight end threat in David Lafleur. Why? If you were going to reach for the guy at 25, do it at 22 and hopefully Lafleur gets eaten up before Dallas picks at 25. A mind boggling personnel move by Ray Rhodes. Grade: D Round 2 - Pick 57 (From San Francisco)- James Darling - MLB - Washington St. - 6-1, 247 Darling is a prototypical middle linebacker with the great mentality and build for the position. Is not a great athlete and lacks sideline to sideline speed. He is a very tough player who clogs the middle and lays the wood on opposing ball carriers. Never stops, is always looking for someone to hit and plays very hard. Has to learn how to shed blocks instead of going around them and with the Eagles lack of a big run stuffer on the D-line that could be a problem. Has some personal baggage. Received a suspended 30-day jail sentence and probation for damaging a gumball machine when he removed it and tried to put it on the car of another man whom he suspected put crickets in his hotel room! (Don’t ask me) Summary: Clearly this is a need position for the Eagles and I think Darling will challenge for the starting job immediately but with Tyrus McCloud and Matt Russell still on the board at this point, why take Darling? James Willis days are numbered but I would feel a lot better with the more athletic McCloud or more productive Russell but even Darling will be an upgrade. Grade: C Round 3 - Pick 71 (From Arizona) - Duce Staley - RB - South Carolina - 5-11, 220 A shifty, tough, hard working, slashing runner who makes you miss. Has nice size, excellent moves and great vision. Good receiver who can adjust after the catch and make things happen. Lacks breakaway speed and is not a home run threat. Summary: A curious pick that would seem to be for the future. With Ricky Watters entering the last year of his contract and Charlie Garner expected to only sign a 1 year deal both could be free agents in 1998. Staley gives the Eagles a back with some skills to develop for 1998 if they can’t get anything done with Watters. At his best Staley looks like a Terry Allen type runner. At his worst he is a back that enables opposing defenses to crowd the line and not worry about the home run threat. Nonetheless Staley was a good gamble in round 3. Grade: B Round 4 - Pick 119 - Damien Robinson - SS - Iowa - 6-2, 214 Great size and good athletic ability. Has the body to be an intimidator. Gives the Eagles a physical presence to bring up to the line of scrimmage to stop the run. Has good instincts but average speed. Has also played cornerback and is a decent man to man coverage guy. Should be able to handle most tight ends and fullbacks by himself. Gets down on himself and has been inconsistent. Isn’t as physical as his body would lead you to believe. Summary: With Mike Zordich on his last legs, this may have been the Eagles most astute pick in the draft. Robinson is far from being a can’t miss prospect but to fill a need like this in the fourth round has to be considered a success. Robinson should push for playing time immediately. Grade: B Round 5 - Pick 152 - Ndukwe Kalu - DE - Rice - 6-4, 246 Tiny, undersized defensive end who may lack the movement skills to switch to strong side linebacker. Kalu is a very good athlete, with good balance and nice closing speed. Has an amazing 40 inch vertical leap. With his small size and speed, he can make offensive tackles look silly with the outside speed rush but obviously will have trouble setting NFL tackles up for such a move. Can be mauled by big time run blockers and will not be able to hold the point of attack. Summary: A tweener who will almost have to either bulk up or make the move to strong side linebacker. Maybe he has a future as a stand up situational pass rusher. Looks like a player without a position in the NFL. Grade: C Round 5 - Pick 155 (From Dallas) - Luther Broughton - TE - Furman - 6-0, 245 Good athlete with nice speed. Good pass receiver who runs well after the catch. Catches the ball effortlessly. Can break tackles. Lacks the top size to be a dominant in line blocker. More of a movement H-back type. Summary: With Ed West moving on, a spot is open on the Eagles roster but Broughton is a totally different player than West. Should be able to at least make a run at a roster spot and may stick as the a third movement type tight end. Grade: B Round 6 - Pick 190 (From San Francisco)- Antwuan Wyatt - WR - Bethune Cookman - 5-10, 196 Has great hands and body control. Eagles are most interested in his kick return capabilities. Returns punts and kicks and has large legs which enable him to break the initial arm tackle. Does have top notch receiving skills also. Doesn’t have great long speed and may not be a home run threat as a kick returner. Is on probation for selling marajuana and is spending time at a boot camp. Summary: The Eagles have brought in a plethora of third receiver types so Wyatt’s best chance to stick will be as a punt returner. Wyatt would have been a 2nd or 3rd round pick if it weren’t for his legal problems so getting him in the 6th is a good value. Boom or Bust type because of legal implications. Grade: B Round 6 - Pick 198 - Edward Jasper - DT - Texas A&M - 6-3, 295 Fills a need. Huge player who holds up at the point. Nose Tackle body with natural strength. Penetrates versus the run. Sheds blocks very well. Is not a hard worker and can be fat and out of shape at times. Lacks the speed and agility to be a threat as a pass rusher. Summary: The Eagles needed a run stopper and if Jasper can be motivated, he may be the answer on first and second downs. Another nice gamble this late. Grade: B+ Round 7 - Pick 207 - Koy Detmer (From St.Louis through NY Jets) - QB - Colorado - 6-1, 180 Carbon copy of his brother. Has all the intangibles and is a natural leader. Great work ethic, very confident, stands in the pocket and can take a hit. Has great feel for the pass rush. Ultra quick release. Lacks top size and arm strength. Will not be a good bad weather quarterback. Has had injury problems. Summary: A strange pick. With his brother, Rodney Peete and Bobby Hoying all on the roster it was thought the Eagles were set at quarterback. This may mean that the loser for the starting QB battle between Ty Detmer ad Peete will be cut but entering the season with two quarterbacks who have never taken an NFL snap as the backups could be a mistake. ESPN’s Sal Palantonio thought the pick may have been to smooth things over with Ty Detmer because Ty has filed a grievance with the NFL over his salary for last year but that seems ridiculous. I’ll say it again, strange pick. Grade: C+ Round 7 - Pick 225 - Byron Capers - CB - Florida St. - 6-0, 194 Good size and speed but lacks football instincts. Doesn’t play as fast as he is and has gotten beaten far to many times. Simply an athlete still learning the game. Summary: Is clearly not ready to be a contributor on the base defense but with his athletic ability, Capers might be able to become a very good special teams player which is something the Eagles sorely lack. Grade: B Round 7 - Pick 227 (From San Francisco) - Deauntae Brown - CB - Central St. - 5-11, 195 Excellent size and strength ratio but only average speed. lacks experience versus top notch competition. Poor tackler. Summary: Not ready for the NFL but has some talent that could be developed. Practice squad candidate. Grade: C Team Notes: The Eagles biggest move during the draft weekend was signing ex-Cowboy linebacker Darrin Smith to a 1 year, 1.6 million dollar contract that could reach 3.1 million with incentives. Smith will take over for the starting left linebacker position from Ray Farmer and along with William Thomas will give the Eagles a pair of the finest outside linebackers in football. Smith is extremely quick and active and should be a significant upgrade over Farmer. Perhaps more importantly the signing weakens the division rival Cowboys even more...As for Farmer, look for him to move back to his old college position of strong safety and challenge Mike Zordich and 4th round pick Damien Robinson for the starting slot. With Farmer’s year long learning experience at linebacker he should turn into one of the best run supporting safties in the game...Ray Rhodes may talk a good game about the Jon Harris pick but he was clearly overreacting to the William Fuller defection to the Chargers. Although he is aging, Fuller was still playing at a pro bowl level and signed a 2 year deal for 4.48 million with the Chargers. That’s not much and when the Eagles are struggling to get to the passer this year remember, blame the Fuller loss on Jeffrey Lurie and Joe Banner. Rhodes desperately wanted him back. After they get a closer look at Harris, I guarantee you will see a Chris Mims or an Anthony Pleasant signed by the Eagles. Harris is just not ready...The Eagles also signed unrestricted free agent guard Mike Zandofsky from Atlanta. Zandofsky is a capable NFL starter and nothing more but he does bring good size and experience to the Eagles line...Restricted free agent free safety James Fuller was resigned to a 1 year deal and should again backup Brian Dawkins...As expected the team released placekicker Gary Anderson because of the Boniol signing. They also released nickel back Don Griffin who really struggled last year. The team would reportedly wanted to bring in Darrien Gordon from San Diego to handle the nickel duties and the punt return chores but he just signed with Denver...Exclusive rights free agent defensive tackle Ronnie Dixon was resigned and then traded to the Jets for a 7th round pick which turned out to be Koy Detmer...The Eagles signed the following rookie free agents after the draft: RB Corey Walker, WR James Thrash, OC Dan Hoover, OG’s Kireem Swinton and Anthony Heywood, OT James Butler, DE Damien Cooper, LB Deshawyn Fogle and DB Anthony Rico...The Eagles are in still in excellent salary cap shape so keep an eye on June 1st. That’s the day numerous veterans will be severed to save cap space around the league. Defensive tackles’s Henry Thomas of Detroit and Jimmie Jones of St. Louis recently have been axed and might be helpful to the Eagles. Draft Talk | Draft Trivia | Profiles