Through all the smoke, all the reports and all the things he says to reporters, remember this one truth about Eagles top personnel executive Howie Roseman — the man values the defensive line.
We've seen that time-and-time again with Roseman. He traded up in the 2012 NFL Draft for Fletcher Cox. He views Brandon Graham as his first ever draft pick. He took Derek Barnett in the top 15 of the 2017 NFL Draft. He handed out his one big contract this offseason to defensive tackle Malik Jackson.
So when the Eagles go on the clock tonight, Roseman will be sitting in the NovaCare Complex hoping that a defensive linemen is there for the taking.
By the time he is off the clock, the guess here is that Notre Dame defensive tackle Jerry Tillery will be the newest member of the Eagles.
Tillery, 6-foot-6, 295 pounds, checks off a number of critical boxes for the Eagles and is the perfect mixture of need and value at No. 25.
Tillery finished his four-year career at Notre Dame with solid numbers — 133 tackles, 23 tackles for a loss and 12.5 sacks — but it is his upside that makes him such an intriguing prospect. Tillery came to Notre Dame having played offensive line in high school, and began the transition to the defensive line as a freshmen. The production and high level of play he has shown in essentially two years of playing the position is impressive and reason to believe he is only scratching the surface of what he could be at the next level.
Tillery improved each season, totaling his highest sack total as a senior (seven) and finishing with 76 quarterback hurries in his final 15 games, per Sports Info Solutions. He also showed steady improvement agains the run, and projects as being much better against the run than Malik Jackson is, and could fill a critical role for the Eagles as the run-stopping defensive tackle they need behind Cox and Jackson. Tillery caused roughly 27% of running plays in his direction to bounce to the outside.
An extremely gifted athlete for the position, some NFL scouts project Tillery to be able to move all around the defensive line, a borderline requirement to play for the Eagles. He would be spending the majority of his time at defensive tackle, but like the Eagles do occasionally with Fletcher Cox, Tillery projects to have the ability to bounce to the outside at defensive end if needed. His quick first step is one of the main reasons why. Tillery lined up at defensive end around 10% of his snaps in college, per Sports Info Solutions, and that number should increase in the NFL.
Tillery is also considered a high-character player, something the Eagles value, especially from their high draft picks. The Eagles brought Tillery in for an official visit to the NovaCare Complex.
Add everything up, and Tillery appears to check all the boxes the Eagles will look for from a defensive tackle — elite athlete, solid production, versatility and high character.
It is possible that when they go on the clock that a defensive linemen they might like better — such as Montez Sweat from Mississippi State — has fallen. The Eagles could also be planning a jump up the draft board. How many quarterbacks and offensive linemen go ahead of the Eagles' pick will also play a huge role in who they end up selecting.
With how the board currently projects to break down, however, Tillery seems like he will be the best option for the team at No. 25 — and it won't take Roseman long to pull the trigger on the pick if he is.
You can follow Eliot Shorr-Parks on Twitter at @EliotShorrParks or email him at esp@94wip.com!
