NFL free agency isn’t over but the craziness of the first week of it is out of the way.
The Eagles were pretty quiet last week and they actually lost some key players like Milton Williams, Josh Sweat and Mekhi Becton. They also traded away veteran safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson.
How will that change mock drafts? Let’s take a look at some updated options at No. 32:
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32. Xavier Watts, S, Notre Dame
What they said: “After trading C.J. Gardner-Johnson this offseason, the Eagles need to fill that safety spot. They do so here with a player who possesses the draft class' best ball skills among safeties. Watts struggled to consistently finish tackles in college, but his anticipation in coverage and knack for finding the ball are unquestionable.”
My take on the pick: The Eagles have never drafted a safety in the first round but that doesn’t mean they won’t this year. And having the No. 32 pick in the draft is a lot different than picking in the top half of the round. After the CJGJ trade, the Eagles will still start Reed Blankenship at one of those safety spots in 2025 but the other is open for Sydney Brown, or a veteran or rookie to be named later. The top safety in the draft is Malaki Starks from Georgia and he’s going to be a name a lot of people get excited about. The other two potential first-round safeties are Watts from Notre Dame and Nick Emmanwori from South Carolina. It’s notable that in this mock draft, Starks was long gone by the Eagles pick but they could have had Emmanwori and instead took Watts.
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Ryan Fowler, The Draft Network
32. Kenneth Grant, DT, Michigan
What they said: “There’s still some fine-tuning needed in Kenneth Grant's game (tightness in lower half tightness, first-step quickness), but the Michigan product is a disruptive and uber-athletic player who remains among the top interior ballplayers in the class. With Milton Williams now out in Philadelphia, Grant could become a highly disruptive force within a defensive line that has talent around him. That fits the script here with the likes of Jalen Carter, Nolan Smith, Jordan Davis, and second-year man Jalyx Hunt all in place.”
My take on the pick: It was pretty obvious before free agency began that Milton Williams was going to leave for a big contract elsewhere and, sure enough, he got a four-year, $104 million deal with the Patriots. The top defensive tackles left on the roster to pair with Jalen Carter are Jordan Davis and Moro Ojomo. The Eagles have to like what they saw in Ojomo last season but this is a position where it would make sense to look toward the draft early. And by most accounts, this is a good and deep class of defensive tackles. Grant is huge at 6-4, 331 pounds and is more of a nose tackle. It wouldn’t be a perfect 1-for-1 swap-out with Milton Williams who was on the smaller side and had a ton of pass rush skill. But Grant is really athletic for his size and had 3 sacks and 6 1/2 TFLs in 2024.
32. Walter Nolen, DT, Ole Miss
What they said: “The Eagles take Walter Nolen to replace Milton Williams, who signed a massive deal with New England. Nolen is an athletic and disruptive wrecking ball on the interior who lives in the backfield. The #2 recruit in the 2022 class, Nolen showed substantial growth as a pass rusher this year.”
My take on the pick: Of these two defensive tackles, Nolen (6-4, 296) is more of a penetrating option who can get upfield and be disruptive in a hurry. If the Eagles are looking for a player who can simply win 1-on-1s as a pass rusher when Carter gets double-teamed, then Nolen would probably be a good fit.
32. Grey Zabel, OL, North Dakota State
What they said: “General Manager Howie Roseman loves adding to the trenches, and Grey Zabel has played a bunch of different offensive line positions in his career (mostly left tackle at North Dakota State before moving inside during his breakout Senior Bowl performance). He can serve as the replacement for Mekhi Becton, who is now a free agent.”
My take on the pick: During his college career, Zabel played a bunch of different spots but it seems like many people see him as a guard at the NFL level. While Zabel is 6-6, 312 pounds, he has 32-inch arms and could lack the length to play at tackle in the NFL. He played four different positions on the O-line at NDSU. After losing Becton in free agency, the Eagles’ top incumbent to replace him is Tyler Steen. Adding a Day 1 or Day 2 player to compete with Steen seems like a solid move. And perhaps getting a player who could one day replace Lane Johnson at right tackle would track too.
Nate Tice and Charles McDonald, Yahoo! Sports
32. Marcus Mbow, OL, Purdue
What they said: “Eagles. Trenches. Mbow has a chance to stay out at right tackle (and be a Lane Johnson successor) or could bump inside to right guard if the Eagles move on from Mekhi Becton. Either way, it’s more big man depth that the Eagles love.”
My take on the pick: This would be another option to draft Johnson’s eventual replacement at right tackle and then see if Mbow could play inside in the interim. Sort of like how the Eagles drafted Cam Jurgens to eventually replace Jason Kelce but got a year out of him at right guard during the wait. Mbow (6-4, 303) also has 32-inch arms, which can be somewhat limiting, depending on the evaluator. Mbow played both right tackle and right guard in college.
32. James Pearce, Edge, Tennessee
What they said: “Pearce is one of this draft's most talented pass-rushers, but he's been followed by that mysterious and alarming phrase: "character concerns." NFL teams tend to know a lot more about this type of stuff than we do, but I'm confident the Eagles have the culture that can handle just about anything. It would be so typical to watch a talented edge rusher fall to Howie Roseman at the very end of the first round.”
My take on the pick: It seems like during this round of mock drafts, some other positions popped up but edge rusher is always going to be one to go back to. The Eagles lost Josh Sweat in free agency and that leaves them with Nolan Smith, Jalyx Hunt and Bryce Huff as they await to hear about Brandon Graham’s retirement decision. Pearce (6-5, 245) is a long and explosive edge rusher who ran a 4.47 at the Combine. There are a few different options who might be there at edge rusher for the Eagles at 32 and Pearce is an intriguing one. He was a productive college player who profiles well. As far as “character concerns,” the Eagles always do their homework on players. But the sentiment that the Eagles have a strong locker room is true, although there is a bit of a changing of the guard in terms of leadership on defense.
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