Philadelphia Eagles' Last-Minute 7-Round Mock Draft and Top-100 Big Board

The biggest weekend of the offseason has finally arrived for the Philadelphia Eagles, and it’s no secret that Thursday's 2016 NFL draft is among the biggest in the franchise’s recent history.

An aggressive duo of trades up in the draft allowed general manager Howie Roseman and the Eagles front office to position themselves for a franchise quarterback, moving from the No. 13 overall pick all the way to No. 2 while offering a great deal to get them there.

They’ve made it quite obvious how enamored they are with both of the top quarterbacks in the class, and diehard fans across Philadelphia are mere hours away from finding out exactly who the franchise's next signal-caller will be.

Of course, a mess of a roster left by ousted coach Chip Kelly has been the primary focus at the start of the Doug Pederson era, and some strong moves in free agency haven’t quite solved every problem. Even without a second-round pick due to the Sam Bradford trade a year ago, Philly has six other picks throughout the rest of the draft to fill key depth needs at linebacker, defensive end, running back and a few other spots worth improving.

There's still a possibility that the Eagles could get some draft capital back in a trade for Bradford, as ESPN's Adam Schefter told 97.5 The Fanatic on Wednesday, but for now we'll just focus on the picks they do have.

Let's work through a seven-round Eagles mock draft that uses more of a realistic approach than a best-case scenario. That means no Jaylon Smith at No. 79, because that's just not happening (feel free to mock me if it does). 

Eagles Big Board: Top 100

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We're picking solely from the positions of need in crafting this big board (QB, OT, RB, WR, DE, LB, CB, S). Since most of the Eagles' picks are in Day 3, this board could be rendered irrelevant by then.

Philadelphia Eagles Big Board

Rank	Player	Position	School
1	Carson Wentz	QB	North Dakota State
2	Jared Goff	QB	California
3	Laremy Tunsil	OT	Ole Miss
4	Jalen Ramsey	CB	Florida State
5	Joey Bosa	DE	Ohio State
6	DeForest Buckner	DE	Oregon
7	Myles Jack	LB	UCLA
8	Ezekiel Elliott	RB	Ohio State
9	Ronnie Stanley	OT	Notre Dame
10	Mackensie Alexander	CB	Clemson
11	Vernon Hargreaves	CB	Florida
12	Laquon Treadwell	WR	Ole Miss
13	Noah Spence	DE	Eastern Kentucky
14	Shaq Lawson	DE	Clemson
15	Reggie Ragland	LB	Alabama
16	William Jackson	CB	Houston
17	Taylor Decker	OT	Ohio State
18	Darron Lee	LB	Ohio State
19	Josh Doctson	WR	TCU
20	Joshua Garnett	OG	Stanford
21	Jack Conklin	OT	Michigan State
22	Jason Spriggs	OT	Indiana
23	Michael Thomas	WR	Ohio State
24	Kevin Dodd	DE	Clemson
25	Eli Apple	CB	Ohio State
26	Leonard Floyd	LB	Georgia
27	Sterling Shepard	WR	Oklahoma
28	Jalen Mills	CB	LSU
29	Corey Coleman	WR	Baylor
30	Derrick Henry	RB	Alabama
31	Su'a Cravens	LB	Southern California
32	Tyler Boyd	WR	Pittsburgh
33	Emmanuel Ogbah	DE	Oklahoma State
34	Cody Whitehair	OG	Kansas State
35	Kendall Fuller	CB	Virginia Tech
36	Karl Joseph	S	West Virginia
37	Shilique Calhoun	DE	Michigan State
38	Christian Westerman	OG	Arizona State
39	Vonn Bell	S	Ohio State
40	Germain Ifedi	OT	Texas A&M
41	Keanu Neal	S	Florida
42	Will Fuller	WR	Notre Dame
43	Deion Jones	LB	LSU
44	Rashard Higgins	WR	Colorado State
45	Le'Raven Clark	OT	Texas Tech
46	Kyler Fackrell	LB	BYU
47	Jaylon Smith	LB	Notre Dame
48	Blake Martinez	LB	Stanford
49	Artie Burns	CB	Miami (FL)
50	Jordan Jenkins	LB	Georgia
51	Malcolm Mitchell	WR	Georgia
52	Kentrell Brothers	LB	Missouri
53	Josh Perry	LB	Ohio State
54	Xavien Howard	CB	Baylor
55	Kyle Murphy	OT	Stanford
56	Pharoh Cooper	WR	South Carolina
57	Kevin Peterson	CB	Oklahoma State
58	Miles Killebrew	S	Southern Utah
59	Antonio Morrison	LB	Florida
60	Alex Collins	RB	Arkansas
61	Jordan Howard	RB	Indiana
62	Joe Dahl	OG	Washington State
63	Bronson Kaufusi	DE	BYU
64	Harlan Miller	CB	Southeastern Louisiana
65	Carl Nassib	DE	Penn State
66	Rees Odhiambo	OG	Boise State
67	Paxton Lynch	QB	Memphis
68	Braxton Miller	WR	Ohio State
69	Shon Coleman	OT	Auburn
70	Joe Haeg	OT	North Dakota State
71	Ricardo Louis	WR	Auburn
72	Jalin Marshall	WR	Ohio State
73	Connor Cook	QB	Michigan State
74	Leonte Carroo	WR	Rutgers
75	Kenyan Drake	RB	Alabama
76	DeMarcus Robinson	WR	Florida
77	Devontae Booker	RB	Utah
78	Keith Marshall	RB	Georgia
79	Hunter Sharp	WR	Utah State
80	Charles Tapper	DE	Oklahoma
81	Beniquez Brown	LB	Mississippi State
82	Caleb Benenoch	OT	UCLA
83	Kamalei Correa	LB	Boise State
84	Charone Peake	WR	Clemson
85	Yannick Ngakoue	LB	Maryland
86	C.J. Prosise	RB	Notre Dame
87	Jatavis Brown	LB	Akron
88	Christian Hackenberg	QB	Penn State
89	Willie Beavers	OT	Western Michigan
90	Kelvin Taylor	RB	Florida
91	Kenny Lawler	WR	California
92	Dadi Nicolas	LB	Virginia Tech
93	Tajae Sharpe	WR	UMass
94	Scooby Wright III	LB	Arizona
95	Jonathan Williams	RB	Arkansas
96	Spencer Drango	OT	Baylor
97	Cayleb Jones	WR	Arizona
98	Peyton Barber	RB	Auburn
99	De'Runnya Wilson	WR	Mississippi State
100	Dominique Robertson	OT	West Georgia

Round 1

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Round 1, Pick No. 2: QB Carson Wentz, NDSU

Eagles fans have likely spent the last week or two hearing about the inevitability of Carson Wentz as their new quarterback and selling themselves on it. If you aren’t sold by now, you may as well accept the uncertain and buckle up.

On paper, Wentz fits the mold of a quarterback who can excel in the league and make this aggressive trade up worth it. He possesses spectacular size at 6’5” and 237 pounds with 10-inch hands, led a pro-style offense at North Dakota State and, despite going up against lower-level competition, constantly made passes that no cornerback in college football would’ve been able to alter.

A small workload in college (only 612 career pass attempts) and small weaknesses in his game may keep him from assuming a starter’s role off the bat, but the Eagles obviously don’t need that and may not want it. You make a move up for this guy not with 2016 in mind but the next 10-to-15 years.

It won’t take that long for fans and folks around the league to find out whether Roseman won or lost this trade, but as a fan, you have to commend the efforts to fill the most valuable position in football with a great prospect.

Round 3

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Round 3, Pick No. 79: OT Shon Coleman, Auburn

Philly made their emphasis on the future abundantly clear when they traded up to No. 2 overall, which is why snatching up the high-potential tackle out of Auburn makes perfect sense.

Offensive line is arguably the Eagles’ biggest long-term need with Jason Peters’ days numbered, and beyond Lane Johnson, there’s nothing to look forward to at the tackle position. Shon Coleman isn’t ready to be thrust into a starting position right now, but his impressive size and ability to truck defenders in the run game gives an offensive line coach plenty to build around.

When Peters is out of the door, the Eagles can slide Johnson over to left tackle and plug Coleman in on the right after plenty of valuable reps throughout his first season or two. After investing so much of the franchise’s future into one quarterback, this is the optimal way of complementing that pick.

Round 5

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Round 5, Pick No. 153: RB Kelvin Taylor (Florida)

How badly the Eagles need a running back depends on who you ask, but with DeMarco Murray gone and Darren Sproles more of a specialist, the right rookie could make a big splash in Year 1. Enter Kelvin Taylor.

The son of the great Fred Taylor, this former Florida back failed to impress at the combine but has put his skills on tape against college football’s nastiest defenses. While he didn’t wow scouts with his numbers in Indianapolis, Taylor has an incredible motor, razor-sharp cuts and decision-making with the ball that mirrors those of his legendary father. And when you account for the poor offense in which he produced 1,035 yards and 13 touchdowns last season, his stats are even more impressive.

With Ryan Mathews and Kenjon Barner, the Eagles really could use a dependable, slippery runner like Taylor who has all the intangibles to become one of the best backs in this class. At the very least, he’ll be the solid change-of-pace back Philly has largely failed to get in Sproles.

Round 5, Pick No. 164: LB Blake Martinez (Stanford)

The Eagles’ starting depth chart at linebacker is seemingly set entering 2016, but depth is needed. This former Stanford tackling machine could force Jim Schwartz to get him on the field as a rookie.

Blake Martinez was the workhorse who led the Stanford defense over the last two seasons, leading one of college football’s most feared defenses in tackles both years as a featured starter. He’s not the fastest linebacker out there but plays way bigger than his 6’2”, 237-pound frame and uses his pound-for-pound strength to muscle his way into stopping the run.

Martinez will need some development to become an all-around linebacker, but there are very few inside backers in the draft who are as adept at stuffing run plays. In the NFC East, Schwartz will be able to utilize him right off the bat and mold him into a solid starter.

Round 6

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Round 6, Pick No. 188: WR Tajae Sharpe (UMass)

The Eagles have Rueben Randle, Chris Givens, Jordan Matthews, Nelson Agholor and Josh Huff at wideout. Those last three have required high draft picks in the last two years. So if Philly wants to add playmakers out there, it has to happen late.

Tajae Sharpe is an ideal option. His excellence in route running and shaking press coverage is exactly what they haven't gotten in Huff, and his biggest weakness (a thin frame) is the easiest problem to fix in going to the next level.

With reliable hands and great ability to beat corners with his footwork, Sharpe could very easily wow Eagles coaches and make an impact as a rookie.

Round 7

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Round 7, Pick No. 233: DE Lawrence Thomas (Michigan State)

So much more emphasis is on the edge with the switch to 4-3. Although the Eagles are decently stocked there, they're also thin and could use a skilled edge-rusher to push the starters.

I'm logging Lawrence Thomas here more based on what he can do rather than what he has done. A highly touted recruit coming into Michigan State, he struggled to live up to expectations despite having great physical tools and never got the full confidence of his coaching staff.

However, his muscle mass is ridiculous and he complements it with great lateral agility, using finesse moves to beat linemen. He's a project that would intrigue a Schwartz-led defense if he can make some waves on the practice squad or in training camp.

Round 7, Pick No. 251: CB Morgan Burns (Kansas State)

With uncertainty around Sproles’ future in Philly, the Eagles could make a fantastic Day 3 pick here by snagging one of the fastest players in the draft while adding depth to a cornerback unit that needs to improve drastically.

Burns may never develop into a serviceable corner in the league, but you won’t find very many—if any—of those in the seventh round. However, a 4.38 40-yard dash and four kick returns for touchdowns in 2015 tell you exactly how much he can impact the return game.

It’s a risk-reward pick that is a lot less risky considering the draft position and has the potential to be very, very rewarding if Burns makes the roster and even takes one kick to the house as a rookie.