Written By Lloyd Vance After the Broncos jumped on RB Knowshon Moreno ahead of them,
the Birds didn’t panic as they took the best player available.
The Eagles made the first of three draft trades to move up and select explosive Missouri WR Jeremy Maclin in the first round. The move to add one of the fastest players in the draft should have brought a smile to QB Donovan McNabb’s face. In the second round the pick of versatile RB LeSean McCoy, who will help keep Brian Westbrook healthier and catch some passes on third downs.
On Day 2 the Eagles stayed aggressive on the offensive side by adding field-stretching tight end Cornelius Ingram in the 5th round. Ingram is a tall muscular tight end, who will get stronger as he comes back from an ACL injury. At the 2009 NFL Combine, the former Florida quarterback recruit looked like he was back to his old form showing quickness and athleticism. He measured 6’4, 245 and produced an eye-popping 4.68 in the forty and 7.12 in the 3-cone drill plus caught the ball well in drills.
The defense and special teams finally got their guy with the addition of DB Victor “Macho” Harris (5th). The Virginia Tech has a history of producing guys, who can block and cover kicks/punts, so look for Harris right away on all special teams. One of my scout colleagues told me that Washington State WR Brandon Gibson is a real find in the 6th round as he is fast and has very good hands. The other O-linemen selected should provide depth to a young emerging group.
When you add in trades for veterans CB Ellis Hobbs and OT Jason Peters you have to believe this is one of the better Andy Reid drafts. The only words of caution I have regarding all the optimism about the 2009 Eagles Draft Class are, “It takes 2 to 3 years to evaluate a draft”.
