Eagles 'Make a Statement,' Go Back to Basics in NFL Draft

Building up front is a foundational principle for the Philadelphia Eagles.

PHILADELPHIA - For the Philadelphia Eagles, it was never Bijan-or-Bust, it was always going to be back to basics in the 2023 NFL Draft.

The Atlanta Falcons ultimately took Bijan Robinson at No. 8 overall, technically taking any ability Howie Roseman had to reverse 40 years of history in an effort to prove the doubters wrong by taking a running back in the first round.

You see, to the Bijan truthers, the Eagles general manager mentioned the word “unique” at his pre-draft presser, and the only possible prospect fitting that vague definition was the superlative Texas star even though later in the same gathering Roseman used his offensive line to further explain the traits Philadelphia searches for.

By now you know the result, a targeted trade-up for imposing Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter, one of the few players in this draft that fits next to Robinson in the blue-chip category.

It’s not that the Eagles didn’t like Robinson as a player but their goal was to get Carter, Will Anderson, Tyree Wilson, or Paris Johnson, according to a team source. Anderson ended up being selected by Houston at No. 3, Johnson came off the board at No. 6 to Arizona and Wilson went immediately after that to Las Vegas.

By that point, Roseman felt the need to move up one spot by giving up a 2024 fourth-round pick to eliminate any suspense and get his “unique” guy in Carter, arguably the best pure football player in the draft who fell due to off-the-field concerns tied to maturity issues that even Kirby Smart acknowledged to teams that were asking, according to an NFL source.

The Carter cost-benefit analysis made sense for the Eagles for a host of reasons including Roseman’s job security, team security chief Dom DiSandro’s due diligence, and a unique ecosystem featuring strong team leaders like Fletcher Cox, who will work next to Carter every day, and a host of ex-Georgia teammates that Carter is close to who will love up the unanimous All-American.

What made the most sense, though, is the team’s DNA: building up front on both sides of the football.

“It just represents how we feel,” Roseman told reporters on Saturday after the draft concluded. “We want to build a team with an O-line and a D-line, and it was important for us to make a statement in this draft in this offseason that this is how we believe we’re going to win.”

The attrition the reigning NFC champions suffered in free agency included a $20 million player on the defensive front in Javon Hargrave, as well as Pro Bowl alternate right guard Isaac Seumalo and talented backup left tackle Andre Dillard, who was paid like a starter by Tennessee.

Along with Carter, the Eagles also selected Alabama offensive lineman Tyler Steen in the third round and Texas defensive lineman Moro Ojomo in the seventh.

“I think every opportunity we had in this draft — [when] the grades were the same we weren’t going off that draft board, and [if] we saw a lineman, we wanted to pick that lineman,” Roseman admitted.

“I think it worked out.”

The Eagles leave the video games and fantasy football for others.

“You guys know how we try to build it,” Roseman told his beat reporters.

If you know, you know.

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-John McMullen contributes Eagles coverage for SI.com's Eagles Today and is the NFL Insider for JAKIB Media. You can listen to John, alongside legendary sports-talk host Jody McDonald every morning from 8-10 on ‘Birds 365,” streaming live on YouTube. John is also the host of his own show "Football 24/7 and a daily contributor to ESPN South Jersey. You can reach him at jmcmullen44@gmail.com or on Twitter @JFMcMullen