Eagles GM Howie Roseman: Is Georgia on His Mind Again in NFL Draft?

The general manager of the Philadelphia Eagles has spent the last two drafts taking players in the first two days coming off college national championships

There have been plenty of educated guesses, and some not so much, in the ubiquitous world of mock drafts, but if there’s one thing that you can be mostly certain of is that the Philadelphia Eagles will draft a player from Georgia.

General manager Howie Roseman has seemingly warmed up to the idea of taking players from FBS championship teams.

It began in 2021 when he turned a lonely eye to the University of Alabama.

The last time the Eagles drafted a player from Alabama had been 2002 when they took receiver Freddie Milons in the fifth round.

That changed two years ago when Roseman selected receiver DeVonta Smith (10 overall after a trade-up with the Dallas Cowboys) and offensive lineman Landon Dickerson (37 overall), two key cogs on the Crimson Tide’s title-winning team in their final seasons there.

Both are core foundation pieces for Philadelphia moving forward.

Last year, Roseman turned his gaze to the University of Georgia, national champions in the 2021-22 season, trading up to land defensive tackle Jordan Davis at 13 overall then selecting Nakobe Dean in the third round.

The Bulldogs had five players taken in the first round last year and, for the first time in draft history, seven defensive players went in the first three rounds. The Eagles, of course, were responsible for taking two of them.

Like Smith and Dickerson, Davis and Dean are core foundation pieces moving forward.

Georgia once again won the national title and is flush with talent.

Four Bulldogs could go in the first round: defensive tackle Jalen Carter, offensive lineman Broderick Jones, edge rusher Nolan Smith, cornerback Kelee Ringo, and tight end Darnell Washington.

Georgia players will dot the draft landscape throughout the three-day selection process, with quarterback Stetson Bennett an interesting prospect to keep an eye on.

It’s a good bet that the Eagles will likely end up with a player from Georgia when the draft begins on April 27.

They have had pre-draft visits with Carter and Ringo. 

Jones is a mauler on an offensive line, a position the Eagles always seem to target, and Smith could very much be on the radar since he has been compared to Haason Reddick, the Eagles’ pass rush star who had 16 sacks in the regular season.

Ed Kracz covers the Philadelphia Eagles for SI Fan Nation Eagles Today. Please follow him on Twitter: @kracze. Want the latest in breaking news and insider information on the Philadelphia Eagles? Click Here. Want even more Philadelphia Eagles news? Check out the SI.com team page here