The Philadelphia Eagles are coming into the draft with a number of needs on both sides of the ball and there's a chance that head coach Chip Kelly may trade to get the chance to pick Johnny Manziel if he slips past the top five, as Peter King writes in the MMQB.com that a deal is possible over the team picking a player like Brandon Cooks or Marqise Lee.
The Eagles are coming into the draft with just six selections and while that isn't much for a trade up, the team can make some other moves later on to get picks deeper in the draft. This class has a ton of depth and that gives Kelly some flexibility and while a Manziel pick is very unlikely with the way Nick Foles played last season, Kelly has to wonder what he could do with a player like Manziel in the NFL after the success he had last season.
The Eagles had one of the best offenses in the league and they were tops in rushing the ball and while they have the first pick at number 22, Manziel could drop out of the top 10 depending on how things go and if that happens, expect the Eagles or someone else to trade up for him. Manziel is one option for the team and while they have Foles, Kelly is a forward thinking guy and that could end up being an amazing move if he can pull if off, but that's a big if.
The Eagles have other concerns and adding Manziel would be something special, but not something realistic and now they have the chance to really replace DeSean Jackson. ESPN.com reported that the team finally made it clear why they released Jackson, saying that he was not a fit for Kelly and his system and while he had his most productive season in his career, he is now with the Washington Redskins and he will get the chance to terrorize the Eagles twice a year.
Last season Jackson was slow to come around, but he ended up with over 80 catches for more than 1,300 yards and now the Eagles need to replace. The team brought back Jeremy Maclin and Riley Cooper and while they also traded for Darren Sproles, they still need to make up for 82 receptions for 1,332 yards and nine touchdowns from last season and that will have to be found somewhere. The draft this year is deep at the wideout position and that is one are many think that the Eagles could go.
The draft has some big names at wide receiver this season, including players like Brandin Cooks, Marqise Lee, Kelvin Benjamin and Allen Robinson and some of those names could be on the board when the Eagles pick. Cooks is a great option to replace Jackson, as they are both speedy receivers and have similar builds as well and he was crazy productive in the Pac-12 for Oregon State, putting up 128 catches for over 1,700 yards and 16 touchdowns. Benjamin is a huge target and should be a good red zone option and he had 15 touchdowns for FSU, while Lee is two years removed from being a Heisman finalist. There is plenty of offensive talent in this draft and the Eagles may go for that this season.
