April 24, 2024
The 2024 NFL Draft is now just a day away, so let's go ahead and put out our final Philadelphia Eagles-only mock draft of the season. As a reminder, after various trades, the Eagles currently have eight draft picks this year, with two in the second round.
Previous Eagles-only mocks
Version 1.0 | Version 2.0 | Version 3.0 | Version 4.0
Trade: The Eagles send the 22nd and 50th overall picks to the Seahawks for the 16th and 81st overall picks. (It's worth noting that the Seahawks love moving back and they don't currently have a second-round pick.)
During his pre-draft press conference a year ago, Howie Roseman explained what the Eagles look for in offensive line prospects.
"I think the thing that we try to do is we tried to find guys who have unique traits that can make a difference in the game, and I think when you look at the best players on our team, they all have a unique skill set," he said. "They all have tools in their body that allow them to compete at the highest level and to play at a Pro Bowl, all-pro level to change games.
"I think what you try to balance in this is obviously you want to evaluate the tape and you want the tape to be really good, but you want guys who have tools in their body to develop into elite players.
"So, when those things don't match, you've got to go back a little bit and figure out the reason why. When I say that about offensive linemen, when you look at our offensive line and you go left to right and you go, Jordan, and you go Landon and you go Kelce and you go Cam and you go Lane and obviously we've got other offensive linemen. Those are guys we've drafted high or have made the Pro Bowl. All of those guys have unique physical traits, like really unique physical traits. They also combine that with incredible character, love of the game, passion for the game, and coachability...
"I know that at the end of the day, some of these offensive line prospects are so much better than some of these college players that they don't have to be technically sound, and we have phenomenal coaches on the staff. Certainly, Jeff Stoutland is one of them. When you give our coaches guys with high football character, with unique physical traits, they will be developed."
Amarius Mims best fits what Roseman described above. To begin, he is an enormous human being, at 6'8, 340:
But also, he possesses tantalizing talent. Coming out of high school, Mims was a five-star recruit (5th nationally by Rivals, 20th by ESPN, and 15th by 247Sports). However, he had an oddball college career for a player who is a lock to be selected in the first round. Due to injuries and a National Championship-winning roster at Georgia where he had to sit behind future NFL tackles his freshman and sophomore seasons, Mims had just 8 career college starts. If he had more experience most draft analysts would likely be talking about him as a top 10 pick.
Two of Mims' starts were in pretty important games against Ohio State in the College Football Playoff following the 2022 regular and TCU in the National Championship Game. For a 6'8, 340-pound behemoth, he is an easy mover in pass pro, on screens, and on run plays to the second level. You can also see how powerfully he shoves guys to the ground.
A couple of years ago, the Eagles selected the center in the draft who most resembled Jason Kelce. Of the offensive tackles in the 2024 draft, Mims is the closest thing to Lane Johnson, in my opinion, in that he probably has the highest upside of any offensive tackle in this class.
Of course, the downside is that if Mims can't play guard in the short term, he will have to understudy behind Johnson for a year or two. We got deep into the pros and cons of that approach a week ago.
The payoff could be that Mims — who is still only 21 years old — develops into an elite player in Philadelphia, where he can learn from the best RT in the NFL and be mentored by a master developer in Stoutland.
Melton has inside-outside versatility, he's fast (4.39 speed) and physical, and although he's only 5'11 he has good length because of his 32" arms.
Melton has a nose for the football (8 INTs the last three seasons), and he's a strong tackler.
He was also an elite special teams player for Rutgers, with four career blocked kicks/punts.
Bullard is a slot corner/safety hybrid who tallied 46 tackles, 3.5 sacks, 3 pass breakups, and 2 INTs (both in the National Championship Game) in 2022. He had 56 tackles and 2 INTs in 2023. He's a hitter with decent speed.
Bullard makes plays and then lets you know about it. His swagger gives me some Chauncey Gardner-Johnson vibes.
The Eagles don't really have a fourth safety, and Bullard brings added versatility in the slot.
(I swear I don't have two Georgia players in here because of the Eagles' recent history of drafting Georgia players. I just like the fit for both players.)
Coleman played at LT, LG, and RG during his career at TCU. His future in the NFL is probably at guard, where he would be an outstanding athlete for the position.
I think you just let Jeff Stoutland work his magic with this type of guy.
I was impressed by Baker's ability to create separation during Senior Bowl practices in January, and when I looked up his numbers I discovered that he averaged 21.9 yards per reception in 2023 for UCF.
Howie Roseman likes taking shots on Day 3 deep threats with high yards per catch averages, like Shelton Gibson, John Hightower, and Quez Watkins. The Eagles haven't yet hit a home run on a guy like that, but I respect the approach, and Baker makes sense as that kind of guy.
In an Ohio State offense that was absolutely loaded with wide receiver talent, Stover found a way to become a productive, efficient tight end, catching 41 passes for 576 yards (an impressive 14.0 YPC for a TE), and 5 TDs. Love his effort and ability after the catch:
Stover has good hands, he runs good routes, and he is also thought of as a good blocker. If there's a negative, it's that he won't be confused for Kyle Pitts on the athleticism front, but when you look at a player like the Cowboys' Jake Ferguson, for example, his measurables suck but he's simply a good football player because he does all the things well that tight ends need to do.
Stover can be a productive No. 2 TE out of the box with starting potential down the road.
Watson had a super productive final season, with 137 tackles, 10 sacks, and 2 forced fumbles in 2023.
He showed off good speed running sideline-to-sideline in Senior Bowl practices and obviously has some blitzing chops to have racked up 10 sacks. I like him as a run-and-hit WILL linebacker.
Ali rushed for over 1,400 yards and 23 TDs as a redshirt freshman in 2021. In 2022, he missed most of the season with a leg injury, but played the final three games. In 2023, he rushed for 1,135 yards and 15 TDs. A Marshall coach that I chatted up at the Pensacola airport on the way home from the Senior Bowl said that he played through a high ankle sprain for most of the 2023 season. He is also a threat as a receiver, as he had 75 career catches. He is a no-nonsense, one cut and go runner.
Ali reportedly suffered a ruptured biceps injury in Mobile, or he'd probably go a little higher.
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