Top 25 Eagles Ranked: Dallas Goedert Catches on at No. 7

Philadelphia Eagles tight end Dallas Goedert has proven to be one of the better players at his position in the NFL.

PHILADELPHIA - Philadelphia Eagles star Dallas Goedert is a really good football player and one of the top tight ends in the NFL.

That said, the sixth-year pro was supposed to join the trio of Travis Kelce, George Kittle, and Mark Andrews in the top tier of the position by now but hasn’t quite reached that stratosphere, at least when it comes to the general public’s perception.

Or perhaps better stated, Goedert, 28, hasn’t reached that level for a full season.

Earlier in his career the South Dakota State product was part of an impressive tandem with Zach Ertz and by last season he was set to stake his claim as perhaps the most well-rounded tight end in the NFL.

And Goedert did that for 12 regular-season games and the Eagles’ three-game run to Super Bowl LVII. Five games missed to a broken glenoid bone in his shoulder on what was an illegal tackle by the facemask against Washington cost Goedert any personal accolades, however.

It’s ironic that in an offense where nine of the 11 starters received some kind of postseason honor, Goedert, one of the best pure football players on the team, was shut out.

The veteran was still good enough to land at No. 7 on the list of top-25 Philadelphia players by SI.com’s Eagles Today.

Eagles Today beat writers Ed Kracz and John McMullen put together their own top 25 players independent of each other’s rankings and then assigned point values to the rankings, with 25 points awarded to the player ranked first on each list, 24 to the player ranked second, and so on, with one point going to the player that was put 25th.

The highest ranking from either reporter breaks any ties in the ballot.

Goedert was No. 6 on McMullen’s list and a tad lower at No. 7 by Kracz. The TE1 finished in an exact tie with the No. 6 overall player that will be released on July 8. Jody McDonald, McMullen’s co-host on JAKIB Sports’ daily BIRDS 365 Show, broke the tie.

So far, the rankings have shaken out this way:

No. 25 - Kenny Gainwell

No. 24 - Nicholas Morrow

No. 23 - Reed Blankenship

No. 22 - Terrell Edmunds

No. 21 - Jake Elliott

No. 20 – Nakobe Dean

No. 19 – Jordan Davis

No. 18 - Jalen Carter

No. 17 - D’Andre Swift

No. 16 - Milton Williams

No. 15 - Fletcher Cox

No. 14 - Avonte Maddox

No. 13 - Brandon Graham

No. 12 - James Bradberry

No. 11 - Landon Dickerson

No. 10 - Jordan Mailata

No. 9 - Darius Slay

No. 8 - Josh Sweat

No. 7 - Dallas Goedert

Goedert finished with 55 receptions in 2022-23, just one off his career-high despite missing the five games, for 702 yards and three touchdowns. Had he kept up that pace for 17 games the numbers of 78 receptions for 995 yards would likely have gotten Goedert noticed more nationally. Meanwhile, Goedert also led the Eagles in postseason receptions with 16.

Goedert ranked second among all tight ends with 12.8 yards per catch last season and even with the missed time he finished third at the position in yards after the catch with 420, a number that shows how impactful he’s become with the football in his hands.

The Eagles, of course, don’t care much about others underrating Goedert and are thrilled to structure their passing game around receivers A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith, along with Goedert. The film also reveals a star at the position with Goedert finishing No. 4 in Pro Football Focus’ tight end rankings behind only Kelce, Kittle, and Andrews. And No. 3 as a pass-catcher behind only Kelce and Kittle.

Philadelphia expects more of the same this season as Goedert headlines a position that includes backup Jack Stoll, who is more of a blocker, and TE3 candidates Grant Calcaterra and Dan Arnold, both better receivers than blockers.

Goedert's ability to handle both aspects of his job makes him a bit of an endangered species in the modern NFL and if on the field for 17 games in 2023, you can almost guarantee his reputation will finally catch up to the reality of his importance to the Eagles.

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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