Just a few hours short of the official announcement of the Eagles pick at No. 2 in Thursday's first round of the NFL Draft, and there's a pretty good idea of who it will be. Let's put it this way: it will be one of two quarterback prospects.
But let's back up for a moment to a week ago when the Eagles still were sitting with the eighth overall pick, not the second, when a quarterback was not likely an option. Who would the Eagles have taken then?
It doesn't matter tonight, as the Eagles will get their quarterback, but in the future, the Eagles could find that better, more serviceable players, were available at the eighth overall pick, instead of taking the risk to move up to second for a potential franchise quarterback. Here are five the Eagles need to hope they don't regret missing out on that could still be on the board when the Cleveland Browns pick eighth overall.
RB Ezekiel Elliott – If the Eagles had stayed at eight, this was the most likely target for them. Elliott garnered a ton of attention and for good reason. If the Eagles were looking for a game-changer who could potentially make an instant impact, this may have been the guy. For a team that is thin at running back, this would have similarly had the same potential as any quarterback they will get instead. Quarterback is the most important component to the offense, but having a sure-fire running back would have made quite a difference as well.
LB Myles Jack – Jack is an interesting prospect. Some consider him the best athlete in the Draft. Others are concerned about his injury history and think that could help him fall right out of the Top 10 and potentially into the late first round. That said, his potential was so high and the Eagles had a need at linebacker that if he were available, it may have been too good to pass up.
CB Vernon Hargreaves – The Eagles have no impending need for depth at the cornerback position, but sometimes a player comes along with such a high ceiling at his position that you take on potential more than need. That's Vernon Hargreaves. This was a blue-chip cornerback, essentially ready to start. If he was available at eight, the Eagles would have been able to add an instant starter to the fold.
OT Ronnie Stanley – It's no secret that the offensive line is an area of weakness for the Eagles. They addressed that with the additions of Brandon Brooks and Stefen Wisniewski, but were certainly going to use the Draft to add more. For the longest, time, it appeared that their first-round focus could be on finding someone to protect Sam Bradford instead of grab his replacement. The top prospect on the line, Laremy Tunsil, was almost definitely going to be gone by the eighth overall pick, but Stanley was the next highest. It would have possibly been a bit of a reach at No. 8, but worth it for the Eagles to fill a need.
OT Jack Conklin – At No. 8, Conklin is an absolute reach. But when the Eagles had made the trade in the first place, likely to try to parlay the eighth pick into the No. 2 pick they now have, there was talk that if their efforts didn't work, they may have looked to trade back into the middle portion of the first round and add another pick. If they did that, and had been on the clock around pick No. 15, then Conklin seemed like the most logical choice.
Kevin Durso is managing editor for Eagledelphia. Follow him on Twitter @Kevin_Durso.
