The 2022 NFL Draft starts on Thursday, April 28. As a lead-up to the draft, we’ll be giving a team-by-team breakdown for positional needs. For each team, we’ll give an overview of the current depth chart and how big of a need each position is in the upcoming draft. You can find the rest of the team needs (as they’re updated) and the rest of our draft content in the 2022 NFL Draft hub.
PHILADELPHIA EAGLES 2022 DRAFT PICKS OVERVIEW
Round 1 (15)
Round 1 (18)
Round 3 (83)
Round 3 (101)
Round 4 (124)
Round 5 (154)
Round 5 (162)
Round 5 (166)
Round 7 (237)
Eagles Team Needs in the 2022 NFL Draft
WR, Interior OL depth, LB, outside CB, S
Philadelphia Eagles Strength of Schedule, 2022
The Philadelphia Eagles have the 3rd easiest NFL strength of schedule for the 2022 season.
Philadelphia Eagles Offense
by Rich Hribar
QUARTERBACK
Jalen Hurts
Garnder Minshew
Reid Sinnett
Jalen Hurts passed the first part of the test in 2021, playing at a level that has the Eagles willing to move forward with him as their starting quarterback, at least for 2022.
Hurts still has two years left on his rookie deal with cap hits of under $2 million in each year. Even if Hurts has a setback in 2022, Philadelphia has low monetary concern if forced to move in another direction.
Hurts rushed for 784 yards and 10 touchdowns this past season, but still needs to show more growth as a passer in year three. Hurts closed 2020 41st in completion rate (61.3%) while second to last in the league in expected completion percentage (61.5%).
The Eagles still have a capable backup in Gardner Minshew under contract for 2022 if things really fall apart this season for Hurts.
2022 is still largely another audition year for Hurts and the Eagles have tons of draft capital, but it would be surprising if they used their premier capital on a quarterback in this draft.
RUNNING BACK
Miles Sanders
Kenneth Gainwell
Jason Huntley
Boston Scott
While Jalen Hurts added a lot to the counting stats in the Philadelphia running game, the Eagles backfield itself was productive as a unit in 2021, ranking 14th in the league in touches per game (31.0), yards from scrimmage per game (159.2) and eighth in yards per touch (5.1).
Miles Sanders was efficient once again on the ground in 2021, averaging 5.5 yards per carry, which anchored his 5.6 yards per touch. Sanders has now averaged 5.8, 5.5, and 5.6 yards per touch over his three seasons in the league.
Despite his rushing efficiency, Sanders failed to score on any of his 163 touches, averaged just 2.2 receptions per game, and missed another five games due to injury. After catching 50 passes as a rookie for 10.2 yards per grab, Sanders has 54 catches since with his yards per catch dropping each season, down to 6.1 yards per catch last season.
Sanders enters the final year of his rookie deal this season.
Kenneth Gainwell turned 101 touches into 544 yards (5.4 yards per touch) with six touchdowns as a rookie. Gainwell still lacks the physical profile of a three-down back and was fourth in their backfield in success rate per rush (51%), but he added 33 catches for 253 yards out of the backfield. Gainwell is a proxy version of Nyheim Hines in this offense while carrying a favorable salary with three years left on his rookie deal.
The Eagles have Boston Scott and Jason Huntley as backend roster depth with Scott capable of filling in and contributing.
The Eagles do not have a glaring need here for 2022, but with Sanders on the final year of his contract and only Gainwell signed beyond this season, they may explore adding an early-down body.
WIDE RECEIVER
DeVonta Smith
Jalen Reagor
Zach Pascal
Quez Watkins
J.J. Arcega-Whiteside
Greg Ward|
John Hightower
Deon Cain
Last year’s first-round pick DeVonta Smith had a strong rookie campaign, catching 64-of-104 targets for 916 yards (14.3 yards per catch) and five touchdowns.
While Smith was a much-needed win for the front office selection of wide receivers, he is still the only good thing this team got from their wideouts in 2021.
Smith accounted for 43.5% of the wide receiver targets (sixth at his position) while the Eagles’ receivers ranked dead last in the NFL in targets per game (13.7) and 31st in yards per game (117.2). Philadelphia ended up ranking 29th in the league in success rate (46%) targeting their wide receivers while only Smith (53%) had a success rate over 50%.
Beyond Smith, nobody here is safe and can be relied on. Jalen Reagor, Quez Watkins, and John Hightower are the only depth options under contract beyond this season, all on rookie deals. Expect the Eagles to be major players for another wideout early in this draft.
TIGHT END
Dallas Goedert
Richard Rodgers
Noah Togiai
Tyree Jackson
Jack Stoll
Dallas Goedert has been finally freed from the early-career roadblock that was playing alongside Zach Ertz during his rookie contract. After Ertz was traded after Week 6, Goedert ran a pass route on 79.7% of the Philadelphia dropbacks (a mark that would have been third over the full season) while commanding 24.5% of the Eagle targets in his games played (which would have ranked second).
Goedert showed big-play ability, posting a career-high 14.8 yards per reception and 10.9 yards per target.
Philadelphia rewarded Goedert with a four-year extension during the season.
After Goedert, things are lean. The team remains optimistic about Tyree Jackson, but after an ACL tear in the final week of the regular season his progress is still more wishful thinking than something to bank on.
Only Jack Stoll is under contract beyond this season.
OFFENSIVE LINE
LT: Jordan Mailata/Andre Dillard
LG: Landon Dickerson/Sua Opeta
C: Jason Kelce/Brett Toth/Jack Anderson
RG: Isaac Seumalo/Nate Herbig/Kayode Awosika
RT: Lane Johnson/Jack Driscoll/La’Raven Clark
Philadelphia fielded one of the best offensive lines in the league last season, ranking third in ESPN’s Pass Block Win Rate (67%) and second in Run Block Win Rate (74%).
At Pro Football Focus, they collectively ranked third in pass blocking grade and fifth in run blocking.
Nearly all of their blemishes came from their depth as Sua Opeta (9.2%), Andre Dillard (8.8%), and Nate Herbig (6.8%) posted subpar pressure rates allowed.
Last year’s second-rounder Landon Dickerson also allowed a 6.6% pressure rate and a team-high 33 pressures, but the other starters in Jordan Mailata (5.2%), Jason Kelce (2.9%), Lane Johnson (2.6%), and Isaac Seumalo (0.9%) were all strong.
All five of those players mentioned above are under contract for multiple seasons, with Seumalo in question with void years baked into his contract beyond this year.
Kelce will also turn 35 years old in November, leaving each season in question as his last in the league. Dickerson was drafted with the future intention of potentially filling that spot, but they have flexibility there with his experience at guard. With Kelce’s age and Seumalo’s contract status, the Eagles will surely pursue adding depth on the interior offensive line.
Philadelphia Eagles Defense
By Dan Pizzuta
Interior Defensive Line
Fletcher Cox
Javon Hargrave
Milton Williams
Marlon Tuipulotu
Rennell Wren
Marvin Wilson
The Eagles released Fletcher Cox but quickly re-signed the 10-year veteran to a cheaper one-year contract. Cox only had 3.5 sacks in 2021 but put up 12 quarterback hits with two forced fumbles and ranked 26th among defensive tackles in pressure rate, per SIS, while playing 66% of the defensive snaps.
Javon Hargrave took over as the dominant pass rusher inside. He ranked third in ESPN’s Pass Rush Win Rate among defensive tackles and ranked fourth at the position in pressure rate. Hargrave set a career-high in sacks with 7.5 and more than doubles his previous career-high (eight) in quarterback hits with 18. He’s in the final year of a three-year deal before his contract voids for 2023.
Milton Williams was drafted in the third round of the 2021 draft to eventually slide in as a replacement for one of Cox or Hargrave, He played 40% of the defensive snaps in his rookie season with six quarterback hits and two sacks. He ranked 45th among defensive tackles in pressure rate.
EDGE
Brandon Graham
Haason Reddick
Josh Sweat
Derek Barnett
Tarron Jackson
Patrick Johnson
Matt Leo
Cameron Malveaux
There were questions about which edge rushers the Eagles would re-sign for the 2022 season. The answer was just that they’d re-sign everyone and add to the group. Brandon Graham tore his Achilles early in the 2021 season and will look to return to full health throughout 2022.
Philadelphia re-signed Sweat to an extension in September and he finished third in Pass Rush Win Rate and 30th in pressure rate among edge rushers in 2021. The Sweat extension made it seem likely Derek Barnett would be gone, but the team just re-signed him to a two-year deal. Barnett was just 70th in pressure rate among edge rushers last season, though he did rank seventh among the position in Pass Rush Win Rate.
The biggest addition was Haason Reddick, who was eighth in Pass Rush Win Rate in his season with the Carolina Panthers. Reddick has 23.5 sacks over the past two seasons and has been at his best when he’s been in a more traditional edge rusher role. He has the ability to drop into coverage and will likely do that a bit with the Eagles, but keeping him chasing the quarterback will get the most value from his skillset.
Off-ball Linebacker
Kyzir White
TJ Edwards
Davion Taylor
Shaun Bradley
JaCoby Stevens
Christian Elliss
Linebacker has not been a position the Eagles have heavily invested in over the past few seasons. Last season, that was a problem but they got a bargain by signing Kyzir White. White played 84% of the defensive snaps for the Los Angeles Chargers last year and was able to make plays all over the field with two interceptions, seven tackles for loss, and four quarterback hits. The 26-year-old was signed to just a one-year deal. White was 10th in yards allowed per coverage snap among 85 linebackers with at least 150 coverage snaps in 2021.
The Eagles had the fifth-highest rate in nickel last season (72.5%), but their other snaps were played in base (23.9%) instead of dime (3.1%). As much as the Eagles had avoided high investment at the position, it’s on the field quite a bit.
T.J. Edwards struggled in coverage last season and ranked 80th among those 85 linebackers in yards allowed per coverage snap.
Philadelphia has taken some swings in the mid and late rounds at the position, but there hasn’t been anything to completely click in the Taylor/Bradley/Stevens grouping. Many have tried to match the Eagles with a Nakoe Dean or Devin Lloyd (the two most common players mocked per Grinding The Mocks) but the mid-round pick is likely the path the Eagles again take at filling in linebacker depth.
Cornerback
Darius Slay
Avonte Maddux
Zech McPhearson
Tay Gowan
Josiah Scott
Kary Vincent Jr.
Craig James
Josiah Scott
Mac McCain III
Darius Slay looked more like the top-tier corner the Eagles hoped they were trading for in Year 2 with the team than he did in Year 1. Slay ranked 16th among cornerbacks in Adjusted Yards allowed per coverage snap in 2021 and regained his form as a No. 1 corner. That’s great for the Eagles, but there are a ton of questions behind him.
Avonte Maddox (18th in Adjusted Yards allowed per coverage snap in 2021) can hold down the slot, but there is no definite answer on the outside. That makes corner a possible selection for one of the Eagles’ first-round picks.
Zech McPherson, a 2021 fourth-round pick, played well in limited playing time, but was only on the field for 117 coverage snaps. Tay Gowan, a 2021 sixth-round pick, was part of the Zach Ertz trade return but he only appeared in two games after coming over from Arizona.
On plays when the quarterback wasn’t pressured, the Eagles ranked 27th in EPA per dropback (opposed to 18th overall), so coverage should certainly be a priority.
Safety
Anthony Harris
Marcus Epps
K’Von Wallace
Andre Chachere
Jared Mayden
After not getting much of a market last offseason, Anthony Harris signed a one-year deal with the Eagles and then did the same this offseason. Harris was mostly fine with the Eagles and didn’t stand out one way or another.
Behind him, the Eagles have some young players who could improve with more playing time. Marcus Epps, a 2019 sixth-round pick of the Minnesota Vikings, has been a special teamer, but was on the field for 48% of the Eagles’ defensive snaps last season. He had some flashes with five passes defensed but is in the final year of his rookie deal.
K’Von Wallace was a slot/safety hybrid in college but the 2020 fourth-round pick hasn’t topped 22% of the defensive snaps yet in his career and has also played mostly on special teams.
Rodney McLeod is still a free agent, but even if the Eagles re-sign the 32-year-old veteran safety, they would still need some more youth and depth at the position.