We eat, sleep and breathe the Eagles. We live and die with what happens on Sundays and consume every nugget of information that comes out between.
A long time had passed between the moment New Orleans kicker Shayne Graham hit a 32-yard field goal to end the Eagles season on Jan. 4, and the start of the NFL Draft on Thursday night. During that four-month stretch, here are the things that kept us busy:
- Free agency saw the Eagles not pursue any big-time stars
- The Eagles randomly released one of their big-time stars, wide receiver Desean Jackson
- Philadelphia Eagles general manager Howie Roseman and head coach Chip Kelly told us their draft philosophy was based in selecting the best player available, not necessarily filling a need
- A delayed NFL Draft gave us extra weeks of expert analysis telling us exactly who the best players would be when the Eagles came up at No. 22
So, with all that knocking around in our heads and the draft several hours old, the Eagles were on the clock at No. 22. They promptly traded the pick to the Cleveland Browns, who selected much-heralded Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel.
This came immediately after the New Orleans Saints selected Oregon State wide receiver Brandin Cooks and the Green Bay Packers picked Alabama safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix at Nos. 20 and 21, respectively.
Two top targets were gone, and then so were the Eagles, dumping their pick to drop four spots in the first round (and add a third-round selection in the process). And then we waited some more, sweating it out and hoping names like USC wide receiver Marqise Lee and Michigan State corner Darqueze Dennard would still be there at No. 26, because thats who the experts told us we wanted. The Cincinnati Bengals took care of the latter at No. 24, but Lee was still there when the Birds went back on the clock. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell strode to the podium to announce the selection, said something that sounded like Marqise and followed that up with a last name Smith that was so stunning, it felt like the world had stopped spinning.
