June 03, 2026
Eric Hartline/Imagn Images
Running back Elijah Mitchell (25) is the latest in a long line of former 49ers to end up with the Eagles.
On Monday, the Eagles made an innocuous signing to their 90-man roster that ordinarily wouldn't deserve more than two sentences in a PhillyVoice story. Except for one thing.
The addition of running back Elijah Mitchell represented yet another former 49ers player on the Eagles' roster, which is now up to five.
It's been an odd-developing trend in the Nick Sirianni era for the Eagles to keep bringing in former 49ers draft picks who, for some reason, were discarded very early.
None of these former Bay Area products has actually made any real impact on the Eagles, and only a few have actually played in a game in Midnight Green.
But the Mitchell signing is the continuation of a trend that begs the question: Why is Howie Roseman so obsessed with signing former 49ers?
Is it envy? The Eagles and Niners have become NFC rivals since Sirianni became head coach in 2021, the same year Jalen Hurts became the official starting quarterback, and the Niners have won three of the four matchups between these teams in the regular season and postseason combined.
Is it an unexplainable coincidence or is something more there?
Let's look at the former 49ers currently with the Birds:
RB Elijah Mitchell: He makes the most sense as Mitchell spent four seasons in San Francisco after being drafted in the sixth round in 2021, running behind Kyle Shanahan's zone-blocking scheme that new Eagles OC Sean Mannion will be implementing – to some degree – in Philadelphia. Mitchell is still just a camp body unlikely to make the team, but he has experience in the offense.
CB Ambry Thomas: Here's where envy possibly plays some role. Thomas was a 2021 third-round pick of the Niners and played 42 total games in four seasons for them, starting 11. One of his starts was the infamous 42-19 win over the Eagles at the Linc, which marked the beginning of the Eagles' 2023 implosion. Thomas bounced around with the Colts and Vikings before coming to the Eagles last year. He spent all last season on the practice squad. He has good size at 6 feet and 190 pounds but stands almost no chance of making the 53.
WR Danny Gray: There's no question Gray has something other Eagles wideouts don't – blistering speed. The former SMU star clocked a 4.33 at the NFL Combine, helping him become a Niners third-round pick in 2022. But that hasn't helped him become a viable NFL receiver. He had one catch in 13 games as rookie, spent all of 2023 on IR and was waived at roster cutdown in 2024. Two weeks later, the Eagles signed him to the practice squad. Last summer, Gray suffered an injury just a few days into camp and got waived with an injury settlement, only to be brought back to the practice squad in November. Even if he stays healthy, he's a total long shot to make the 53 despite the top-end speed.
TE Cameron Latu: After two really productive seasons at Alabama, Latu was a third-round pick of the Niners in 2023 but tore his meniscus in the preseason and missed his rookie year. The Niners then waived him the following August – holy impatience, Batman! Latu spent most of his second NFL season on the Browns' practice squad before the Eagles signed him last January. Latu didn't initially make the 53, but the Eagles got him on the active roster by Week 4 and converted him to fullback. He blocked a punt in his first game, which Sydney Brown returned for a touchdown. He's back at tight end now and, like Mitchell, has experience in the scheme. He has a somewhat decent chance to make the 53, depending on how many tight ends the Eagles plan to keep.
CB Tariq Casto-Fields: The Niners drafted the former Penn State standout in the sixth round of the 2022 draft. He didn't even survive past training camp, not even to the practice squad. The Commanders quickly claimed him and he played 10 games in two seasons with Washington. He played two games with the Panthers in 2024 but was waived in October before the Eagles signed him to their practice squad. At 6-foot-1, 197 pounds, he has great size for the position lacks speed. He's another major long shot to make the 53.
Besides the aforementioned five, the Eagles have several other recent former 49ers on their roster. Here are some others:
LB Oren Burks: Originally drafted by the Packers in 2018, he played in San Francisco from 2022-2023 before signing with the Eagles in 2024 and helping them win a Super Bowl. He stepped into a starting role in the postseason when Nakobe Dean went down, and Vic Fangio's defense didn't skip a beat.
DT Kentavius Street: A fourth-round pick of the Niners in 2019 despite suffering an ACL tear before the draft, he played 35 games for them in four seasons before heading to New Orleans. A year later, he signed with the Birds and made the team but got traded mid-season to the Falcons for draft compensation.
S Jaquiski Tartt: The Niners picked him in the second round of the 2015 draft and – shocker! – he made it seven seasons with them. The Eagles signed him late into free agency in 2022 as part of their grand plan to replenish the safety position, but Tartt left the team for a bit during training camp and didn't make the cut. The Eagles eventually traded for C.J. Gardner-Johnson, a positive from a negative, I suppose.
RB Ty Davis-Price: Another early discarded former Niners third-round pick – joining Thomas, Gray and Latu – the former LSU star didn't even make it through two full seasons in the Bay Area. The Eagles signed him in the offseason and Davis-Price ended up playing in one game, against the Cowboys, but got waived in May of 2025. Last year, he played for the Birmingham Stallions of the USFL.
RB Trey Sermon: Drafted by the Niners in the – yep, you guessed it – the third round in 2021, the former Ohio State star got into Shanahan's doghouse early and fell behind both Raheem Mostert and Eli Mitchell going into the season. He played nine games that year but didn't make the Niners out of camp in 2022. (Side note: Why do people think John Lynch is a good GM?) The Eagles claimed him off waivers and he played two games for them in 2022. After being waived with an injury twice by the Eagles in 2023, he signed with Colts and wound up playing 31 games for them between 2023-2024. He signed a one-year deal with the Steelers last year but only played in four games.
QB Nick Mullens: The Niners didn't draft Mullens, but they signed the Southern Miss product as a rookie free agent in 2017. He spent four seasons there, starting 16 games. One of his starts came against the Eagles on Sunday Night Football in 2020. The Niners lost, 25-20, thanks to a late TD connection between – try not to laugh – Carson Wentz and Travis Fulgham. After the Niners didn't tender him as a restricted free agent, he hit the open market, and naturally the Eagles signed him to a one-year deal. He didn't survive training camp and spent most of the 2021 season in Cleveland.
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