July 13, 2015
Chris Jackson/AP
Eagles CB JaCorey Shepherd led all drafted cornerbacks with 28 pass breakups over the last two seasons.
On the "position specifics" front, evidence would clearly indicate that the Eagles prioritize defensive backs who get their hands on the ball. I aggregated the number of pass breakups that each of the 31 cornerbacks that were selected in the 2015 NFL Draft had in 2013 and 2014. The three corners the Eagles drafted all landed among the top six players in that category, including the #1 overall player, sixth round pick JaCorey Shepherd:
| Player | Team | PBU - 2014 | PBU - 2013 | TOTAL |
| JaCorey Shepherd | Eagles | 15 | 13 | 28 |
| Darryl Roberts | Patriots | 17 | 7 | 24 |
| Dexter McDonald | Raiders | 13 | 10 | 23 |
| Randall Evans | Eagles | 10 | 12 | 22 |
| D'Joun Smith | Colts | 8 | 13 | 21 |
| Eric Rowe | Eagles | 13 | 7 | 20 |
| Craig Mager | Chargers | 10 | 9 | 19 |
| Doran Grant | Steelers | 9 | 10 | 19 |
| Kevin Johnson | Texans | 6 | 12 | 18 |
| Lorenzo Doss | Broncos | 9 | 9 | 18 |
| P.J. Williams | Saints | 10 | 7 | 17 |
| Alex Carter | Lions | 9 | 8 | 17 |
| Charles Gaines | Browns | 10 | 7 | 17 |
| Marcus Peters | Chiefs | 7 | 9 | 16 |
| Steven Nelson | Chiefs | 8 | 8 | 16 |
| Damian Swann | Saints | 8 | 8 | 16 |
| Quandre Diggs | Lions | 5 | 10 | 15 |
| Ifo Ekpre-Olomu | Browns | 9 | 6 | 15 |
| Trae Waynes | Vikings | 8 | 5 | 13 |
| Tevin Mitchel | Redskins | 8 | 5 | 13 |
| Byron Jones | Cowboys | 4 | 8 | 12 |
| Jalen Collins | Falcons | 9 | 2 | 11 |
| Senquez Golson | Steelers | 8 | 3 | 11 |
| Quinten Rollins | Packers | 9 | 0 | 9 |
| Ronald Darby | Bills | 4 | 4 | 8 |
| Bobby McCain | Dolphins | 4 | 4 | 8 |
| Josh Shaw | Bengals | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| Taurean Nixon | Broncos | 4 | 1 | 5 |
| Akeem King | Falcons | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| Tray Walker* | Ravens | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Tye Smith* | Seahawks | N/A | N/A | N/A |
*PBU stats for Tray Walker and Tye Smith could not be located.
Additionally:
• The Eagles brought in the #2 player on the list, Darryl Roberts, for a pre-draft visit.
• The only undrafted defensive back the Eagles signed was Coastal Carolina's Denzel Rice, who had 22 pass breakups the last two years, which would tie him with Randall Evans for 4th on the list.
Follow Jimmy on Twitter: @JimmyKempski
