Redskins, NFC East 2020 NFL Draft grades: Washington has competition
By Ian Cummings
Philadelphia Eagles
Round 1 – TCU WR Jalen Reagor (B)
Round 2 – Oklahoma QB Jalen Hurts (D+)
Round 3 – Colorado LB Davion Taylor (C+)
Round 4 – Clemson DB K’Von Wallace (B)
Round 4 – Auburn OT Jack Driscoll (B+)
Round 5 – Boise State WR John Hightower (B+)
Round 6 – Temple LB Shaun Bradley (B)
Round 6 – Southern Miss WR Quez Watkins (A-)
Round 6 – Auburn OT Prince Tega Wanogho (A)
Round 7 – Stanford LB Casey Toohill (B-)
If you negate the Philadelphia’s second-round selection, the Eagles actually had a good draft. They made a solid pick with upside in Round 1 by selecting Jalen Reagor, and then on Day 3, they came back and mounted a number of value deals, from receivers John Hightower and Quez Watkins to Auburn offensive tackle Prince Tega Wanogho.
Without that second-round pick, the Eagles are looking at a solid B+. But the Jalen Hurts selection was a bit head-scratching in a number of ways. One can understand why the Eagles made that selection, but an argument can be made that there were many other, better ways to spend the pick.
Jalen Hurts is a dynamic player, no doubt, and he was actually one quarterback I liked more than then consensus this past draft season. Quarterback security is important, and Carson Wentz’s health record provides reason for at least moderate pause there. But Wentz played all 16 games last year, and he’s not a free agent until 2025.
It wouldn’t have been unreasonable for Philadelphia to invest in security at quarterback with one of their fourth-rounders, but a second-rounder, for a signal caller who isn’t guaranteed to see the field, is a price too steep, especially for a team like Philadelphia that had numerous other needs at that spot. The pick of Hurts, while not entirely baseless, was a major sacrifice of value, and that could end up hurting the Eagles in the future.