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PHILADELPHIA − Before the start of the third and final day of the NFL draft, Eagles general manager Howie Roseman and his staff have a meeting to discuss "passion projects."
These are players who might be new to football, but have unique athletic abilities. Or players who had unusual skills untapped in college. Or a talented player who's recovering from an injury.
In past years, these "passion project" players led to seventh-round gems like left tackle Jordan Mailata, a rugby player from Australia who had never played organized football; or a brilliant minded defensive tackle like Moro Ojomo; or a starting defensive back like Jalen Mills; or an undrafted free agent like safety Reed Blankenship.
So there was Roseman during the three-day draft trading twice to stockpile seventh-round picks.
Before the draft, the Eagles had zero seventh-round picks. By the time the Eagles were done, they drafted three players in the seventh round including Nigerian defensive tackle Uar Bernard, who had never played football until he was scouted through the International Pathways Program.
Truth be told, Roseman said he wanted even more seventh-round picks.
"We had a bunch of guys we wanted to take," Roseman said. "Even at the end, we were sitting there going, ‘Can we try to get a couple more picks?’"
Bernard is 6-foot-4, 306 pounds with 6% body fat. Sure, he might take a few years to develop. But so did another IPP player the Eagles took a chance on in Mailata, the 6-8, 368-pound former rugby player from Australia.
"It was a passion project," Roseman said. "Obviously, (Bernard) has got a lot of tools in his body. We understand it’s gonna take time. It’s gonna take a lot of time here, but it’s pretty cool. We spend a lot of time talking about unusual, and certainly unusual with that guy."
It was like this throughout the Eagles' draft, beginning with first-round pick Makai Lemon, a wide receiver who's neither big nor exceptionally fast but catches practically every pass thrown his way. There was second-round pick Eli Stowers, a tight end who came to college as a quarterback. There was third-round pick Markel Bell, a mountainous offensive tackle at 6-9, 346 pounds.
HOWIE'S MASTERCLASS: How Eagles turned major trade, 'unusual' picks into NFL draft masterclass
LEMON DROP: Why Makai Lemon's drop to Eagles made A.J. Brown biggest winner of all
It went on to the Eagles' Day 3 picks, beginning with North Dakota State quarterback Cole Payton. Yes, it's the same school that produced Eagles draftee Carson Wentz, the No. 2 pick in the 2016 draft. The Eagles took Payton in the fifth round at No. 178.
Payton waited four years to become the Bison's full-time starter. When Payton finally got the chance, the 6-3, 233-pound left-handed QB completed 72% of his passes, threw for 2,719 yards with 16 touchdowns and 4 interceptions. He also ran for 777 yards.
"It was tough. It wasn’t easy, for sure," Payton said about waiting. "Being the competitor I am, I just love football. People asked why didn’t you transfer? It’s because I believed in NDSU. The pro-style offense, the fact that they have sent so many guys to the NFL. I felt like, looking ahead, I have one year and I was going to make the most of that one year.
"And here I am."
There was a purpose to every pick the Eagles made in the draft, and to every pick they didn't make.
They traded a fifth-round pick this year and sixth-rounder to get Packers wide receiver Dontayvion Wicks, a third wide receiver behind DeVonta Smith and Lemon (assuming A.J. Brown is traded after June 1). The Eagles also traded third-round picks this year and next to get Vikings edge rusher Jonathan Greenard, who had 12.5 sacks in 2023 and 12 in 2024.
Greenard and Wicks are better than any edge rusher or receiver the Eagles could have drafted in the middle rounds.
Then the Eagles turned to their "passion projects." No, they don't always work out. But in a draft that wasn't very deep, sometimes it's those hidden traits that determine whether a late-round pick can become the next Mailata or Ojomo.
So the Eagles tried stockpiling as many as those picks as possible. They got Georgia guard Micah Morris in the sixth round, and seventh rounders in Texas Tech safety Cole Wisniewski, Bernard and New Mexico edge rusher Keyshawn James-Newby.
Morris' claim to fame came as a freshman at Georgia in 2021, when he was lining up on the scout team opposite future Eagles star defensive tackles Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis and edge rusher Nolan Smith.
"For starters, it was not fun at first, I can tell you that much," Morris said with a laugh. "But it prepared me for this moment. It just provided me with the chance to learn from the best and develop. Obviously, I’m just giving them a look being on the scout team.
"But I’m also perfecting my craft, working against top, first-round draft picks, elite NFL players and All-Pro players ... So whenever it is my time, I know that I’ve been through the hardest there is to offer."
Again, there's no guarantee that any of these late-round picks will work out. But it all fits the Eagles' desire to find gems throughout the draft.
"There are really two kinds of players that hit late when we study it," Roseman said. "There are guys that have unique traits. I think when you talk about Jordan (Mailata) and Moro (Ojomo), those are those guys. And then there are guys that are just really good players. And you see that through production. You see that through instincts. Everything in life revolves around instincts.
"I think that you see that in a player like Reed (Blankenship). I think you see that in a seventh-round pick like Jalen Mills. Those guys, they just have a great football sense, football IQ."
That, at least, gives them a chance.
Contact Martin Frank at [email protected]. Follow on X @Mfranknfl. Sign up for the "Eye On The Eagles" newsletter, emailed to your inbox every Friday morning. Read his coverage of the Eagles’ championship season in “Flying High,” a hardcover coffee-table book from Delaware Online/The News Journal. Details at Fly.ChampsBook.com
This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: How Eagles' 'passion projects' led to Nigerian D-tackle, draft gems
Continue reading...
These are players who might be new to football, but have unique athletic abilities. Or players who had unusual skills untapped in college. Or a talented player who's recovering from an injury.
In past years, these "passion project" players led to seventh-round gems like left tackle Jordan Mailata, a rugby player from Australia who had never played organized football; or a brilliant minded defensive tackle like Moro Ojomo; or a starting defensive back like Jalen Mills; or an undrafted free agent like safety Reed Blankenship.
So there was Roseman during the three-day draft trading twice to stockpile seventh-round picks.
Before the draft, the Eagles had zero seventh-round picks. By the time the Eagles were done, they drafted three players in the seventh round including Nigerian defensive tackle Uar Bernard, who had never played football until he was scouted through the International Pathways Program.
Truth be told, Roseman said he wanted even more seventh-round picks.
"We had a bunch of guys we wanted to take," Roseman said. "Even at the end, we were sitting there going, ‘Can we try to get a couple more picks?’"
Bernard is 6-foot-4, 306 pounds with 6% body fat. Sure, he might take a few years to develop. But so did another IPP player the Eagles took a chance on in Mailata, the 6-8, 368-pound former rugby player from Australia.
"It was a passion project," Roseman said. "Obviously, (Bernard) has got a lot of tools in his body. We understand it’s gonna take time. It’s gonna take a lot of time here, but it’s pretty cool. We spend a lot of time talking about unusual, and certainly unusual with that guy."
It was like this throughout the Eagles' draft, beginning with first-round pick Makai Lemon, a wide receiver who's neither big nor exceptionally fast but catches practically every pass thrown his way. There was second-round pick Eli Stowers, a tight end who came to college as a quarterback. There was third-round pick Markel Bell, a mountainous offensive tackle at 6-9, 346 pounds.
HOWIE'S MASTERCLASS: How Eagles turned major trade, 'unusual' picks into NFL draft masterclass
LEMON DROP: Why Makai Lemon's drop to Eagles made A.J. Brown biggest winner of all
It went on to the Eagles' Day 3 picks, beginning with North Dakota State quarterback Cole Payton. Yes, it's the same school that produced Eagles draftee Carson Wentz, the No. 2 pick in the 2016 draft. The Eagles took Payton in the fifth round at No. 178.
Payton waited four years to become the Bison's full-time starter. When Payton finally got the chance, the 6-3, 233-pound left-handed QB completed 72% of his passes, threw for 2,719 yards with 16 touchdowns and 4 interceptions. He also ran for 777 yards.
"It was tough. It wasn’t easy, for sure," Payton said about waiting. "Being the competitor I am, I just love football. People asked why didn’t you transfer? It’s because I believed in NDSU. The pro-style offense, the fact that they have sent so many guys to the NFL. I felt like, looking ahead, I have one year and I was going to make the most of that one year.
"And here I am."
There was a purpose to every pick the Eagles made in the draft, and to every pick they didn't make.
They traded a fifth-round pick this year and sixth-rounder to get Packers wide receiver Dontayvion Wicks, a third wide receiver behind DeVonta Smith and Lemon (assuming A.J. Brown is traded after June 1). The Eagles also traded third-round picks this year and next to get Vikings edge rusher Jonathan Greenard, who had 12.5 sacks in 2023 and 12 in 2024.
Greenard and Wicks are better than any edge rusher or receiver the Eagles could have drafted in the middle rounds.
Then the Eagles turned to their "passion projects." No, they don't always work out. But in a draft that wasn't very deep, sometimes it's those hidden traits that determine whether a late-round pick can become the next Mailata or Ojomo.
So the Eagles tried stockpiling as many as those picks as possible. They got Georgia guard Micah Morris in the sixth round, and seventh rounders in Texas Tech safety Cole Wisniewski, Bernard and New Mexico edge rusher Keyshawn James-Newby.
Morris' claim to fame came as a freshman at Georgia in 2021, when he was lining up on the scout team opposite future Eagles star defensive tackles Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis and edge rusher Nolan Smith.
"For starters, it was not fun at first, I can tell you that much," Morris said with a laugh. "But it prepared me for this moment. It just provided me with the chance to learn from the best and develop. Obviously, I’m just giving them a look being on the scout team.
"But I’m also perfecting my craft, working against top, first-round draft picks, elite NFL players and All-Pro players ... So whenever it is my time, I know that I’ve been through the hardest there is to offer."
Again, there's no guarantee that any of these late-round picks will work out. But it all fits the Eagles' desire to find gems throughout the draft.
"There are really two kinds of players that hit late when we study it," Roseman said. "There are guys that have unique traits. I think when you talk about Jordan (Mailata) and Moro (Ojomo), those are those guys. And then there are guys that are just really good players. And you see that through production. You see that through instincts. Everything in life revolves around instincts.
"I think that you see that in a player like Reed (Blankenship). I think you see that in a seventh-round pick like Jalen Mills. Those guys, they just have a great football sense, football IQ."
That, at least, gives them a chance.
Contact Martin Frank at [email protected]. Follow on X @Mfranknfl. Sign up for the "Eye On The Eagles" newsletter, emailed to your inbox every Friday morning. Read his coverage of the Eagles’ championship season in “Flying High,” a hardcover coffee-table book from Delaware Online/The News Journal. Details at Fly.ChampsBook.com
This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: How Eagles' 'passion projects' led to Nigerian D-tackle, draft gems
Continue reading...
