I had someone point out to me today that the Philadelphia Eagles are not playing any of their six players selected in the first three rounds from 2010 and 2011.
It made me take a careful look at the draft, and although it’s still way too early to analyze these players based on their production in a year and a few months, or just a few months, it’s safe to say that Andy Reid’s last two drafts have been just brutal.
Let’s analyze each draft.
2010:
In 2010, the Eagles selected defensive end Brandon Graham, safety Nate Allen, defensive end Daniel Te’o-Nesheim, cornerback Trevard Lindley, linebacker Keenan Clayton, quarterback Mike Kafka, tight end Clay Harbor, defensive end Ricky Sapp, wide receiver Riley Cooper, running back Charles Scott, linebacker Jamar Chaney, defensive tackle Jeff Owens, and safety Kurt Coleman.
The biggest contributor out of the bunch is safety Nate Allen, who had a solid rookie season before suffering a torn patellar tendon in December. He hasn’t completely recovered from the injury and is a backup at this point in 2011.
Jamar Chaney and Kurt Coleman both played well down the stretch in 2010 and earned starting roles in 2011 but both have been a big disappointment.
Graham had a poor rookie season, tore his ACL against the Dallas Cowboys, and likely won’t play until week 7 of the season. Even when he does play, I haven’t found a lot of Eagles fans who have any expectations for him this season (or ever).
Te’o-Nesheim has been released (and was resigned to the practice squad). Lindley was released to make room for Joselio Hanson.
Kafka and Clayton and Harbor are solid backups. Cooper is your typical fifth-string wide receiver.
And Sapp, Scott, and Owens never had any contribution with the team.
Of the entire 2010 class, only two players are starters, and none of the top four picks is playing at all right now.
2011:
In 2011, the Eagles selected guard Danny Watkins, safety Jaiquawn Jarrett, cornerback Curtis Marsh, linebacker Casey Matthews, kicker Alex Henery, running back Dion Lewis, guard Julian Vandervelde, center Jason Kelce, linebacker Brian Rolle, linebacker Greg Lloyd Jr, and fullback Stanley Havili.
The biggest contributor in this year’s class is Kelce, who shockingly stole the starting job away from nine-year veteran Jamaal Jackson in training camp.
Matthews is also a starter but for the life of me, I cannot figure why (and I think he’ll lose his starting job before week four). And Henery is the kicker so that’s like being a starter.
Lewis and Rolle are solid backups, and I could see Rolle starting soon.
Oh, and Vandervelde made the tean, and Lloyd and Havili are on the practice squad.
But Watkins has done absolutely nothing and played so poorly that the Eagles went out and signed free agent guard Kyle DeVan to start in his place. Jarrett hasn’t gotten on the field this season despite terrible play from the Eagles’ two starting safeties. Marsh played well in training camp but hasn’t gotten on the field this season, largely because of the Eagles’ incredible three cornerbacks ahead of him.
That means that the first, second, and third round draft picks for each of the past two seasons have made virtually no contribution: Graham, Allen, Te’o-Nesheim, Watkins, Jarrett, and Marsh. And that’s unacceptable.
I understand that not every pick from the 2011 draft is going to make a significant contribution immediately, especially because of the lockout that prevented players from meeting with coaches and studying their playbook.
But the Brandon Graham pick is looking terrible. The Te’o-Nesheim pick is a disaster. And Allen could be a hit or miss.
Either way, Andy Reid is the longest-tenured head coach in the National Football League and is very respected for his drafts, particularly in 2002 when he selected Lito Sheppard, Sheldon Brown, Michael Lewis, and Brian Westbrook in the same class.
He’s just blown it over the past two years. Thankfully, players still have time to prove themselves and I think a number of them will (like Danny Watkins and Nate Allen).
But it would really help the 2011 Eagles if they could receive contributions from players over their past two drafts, instead of having to sign high-caliber free agents to fill the numerous voids.
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