Philadelphia Eagles' Draft Shows Front Office Mentality

At the start of last season, I was excited to see how Kevin Kolb would perform.  I looked forward to the young stars on offense maturing over the next two to three years.  I had hoped that this would hopefully have been the start of a dynasty Philadelphia Eagles team such as the Patriots, Colts, or Steelers have been.

Oh, how things have changed.

Since then, the Eagles have shifted their plans to include Vick as the starter for the foreseeable future.  The 2011 NFL draft indicated a mentality change from "retooling" to "loading up" for a Super Bowl run.  Prior to the draft, the team needs were cornerback, offensive linemen, safety, linebacker, defensive line and backup running back.

A common complaint on the Eagles' draft was that we may have reached for certain picks.  Both sides have arguments.  If you like a guy, I say go get him, but it is worth getting value at your pick as well. 

Danny Watkins and many of the lower draft picks were drafted to address the offensive line. 

Our second-round pick, Jaiquawn Jarrett, filled the void at safety that would presumably be left at Quintin Mikell's departure. 

Our third-round cornerback, Curtis Marsh, has all the athletic tools but lacks experience. 

Our fourth-round picks of Casey Matthews brings depth at middle linebacker behind Jamar Chaney in the event of a Stewart Bradley departure, and Alex Henery's drafting all but signaled the departure of David Akers.

So three of our key free agents have been supposedly replaced by rookies drafted highly.  This is the most drafting for need I have seen the Eagles engage in, in recent memory.  They clearly want to shore up any holes before they may form and address other needs in free agency.

Although other needs still exist, cornerback, linebacker and defensive line could still use reinforcements.  The most pressing of all of these is cornerback.  For this reason, I believe that the Eagles will be aggressive in free agency, bringing on at least one blue chip player if not two. 

This offseason may very well be similar to the last offseason spending spree which allowed the Philadelphia Eagles to get past the NFC Championship hump and make a Superbowl appearance.