With Super Bowl 50 now complete as the Denver Broncos defeated the Carolina Panthers 24-10. It is time for all 32 NFL teams to get ready for the 2016 NFL Draft. For the Philadelphia Eagles, they solidified their defensive line last week re-signing defensive end Vinny Curry to a five-year deal, not creating another draft need. With the Eagles having the 13th overall pick, they could ultimately go with the Best Player Available scenario in this year’s draft.
On Sunday, Steve Palazzolo of Pro Football Focus, posted the third version of his mock draft. In his second edition, Palazzolo had the Eagles taking safety/linebacker Su’a Cravens from USC. Sticking with the theme of defense, Palazzalo in his latest mock draft, has the Eagles taking linebacker Myles Jack out of UCLA.
Here is Palazzalo’s reasoning on why the Eagles should take Jack:
“With so many coverage issues at linebacker last season, Jack is an immediate upgrade as he brings a versatile presence to the back-7. His +15.0 coverage grade led the nation in 2014 and he’s been solid against the run at +11.9 over the last two years.”
Just as Palazzolo states, Jack would be an immediate upgrade as both linebackers Mychal Kendricks and Kiko Alonso were not good in pass coverage this season. Eagles fans remember the Week 16 matchup against the Washington Professional Football Team, where both linebackers were torched by tight end Jordan Reed to the tune of nine receptions for 129 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
In his three years at UCLA, Jack played both running back and linebacker position but ultimately showed more promise on the defensive side of the ball. As a freshman, Jack had 76 total tackles, 11 pass deflections, seven tackles for loss, two interceptions and a sack. He followed up his fantastic freshman campaign with a solid sophomore season finishing with 87 total tackles, eight tackles for loss, seven pass deflections and an interception.
This season, Jack’s time on the field was cut short as he suffered a season-ending knee injury on Sept. 23 during a non-contact drill at practice. It will be interesting to see how Jack looks since he has not played in months. If the Eagles do take him with the 13th overall pick, they will be getting a sure-fire stud to play next to 2015 third round pick Jordan Hicks for many years to come.
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