The Eagles misevaluated Micah Parsons in the 2021 NFL Draft.
That is really the only way to look at how things played out last year. Yes, they ended up with a great player in Devonta Smith. But if the Eagles knew Parsons was going to be an elite defensive piece that can create consistent pressure on the quarterback they lwould have just sat at No. 6 to select him.
Instead, like other teams did, it seemed the Eagles viewed him more of a tweaner linebacker than the pass rusher he turned out to be. For a team that values pass rushers as much as they do, there is no chance they would pass on him in favor of Smith if given the choice again.
The good news for fans is that the Eagles are a team that tries to correct their mistakes quickly. When their team was slow, they went out and drafted every fast receiver they could find. When the team was too old, they quickly prioritized youth. When they discovered the value of a backup quarterback, they opened up a factory.
This offseason their overcorrection could involve their misevaluation of Parsons. It has started with the signing of Haason Reddick, a standup edge rusher who can also (theoretically) play linebacker.
With that in mind, and the 2022 NFL Draft now less than a week away, a player to keep an eye on for the Eagles is Utah's Devin Lloyd, a linebacker that has similar qualities to Parsons and could be the team’s chance to get a more athletic version of the player they passed on last season.
To start, Lloyd has a similar physical build to Parsons. Both stand 6-foot-3 and weigh around 240 pounds. Both have long arms and have a great combination of speed and strength. Lloyd did more reps on the bench press than Parsons did, and Parsons ran a faster 40 time, but overall they are similar athletes. They have close to identical 10-yard splits and broad jumps.
There are some differences. Lloyd is viewed as being better in coverage coming out of college. He should be able to stick with tight ends right away. Despite Lloyd having more reps on the bench press, Parsons is probably physically stronger right now when it comes to shedding blocks. Overall, however, they look the same out on the field — long arms, great speed for their size and have the physical traits to lineup anywhere in the box.
What makes their comparison important heading into the draft, especially for the Eagles, is that Lloyd could have the same potential Parsons does as a pass rusher.
Lloyd had more sacks (7.0) than Parsons did (5.0) his college season and got to the passer in a similar way Parsons did. Parsons got the majority of his sacks last season either coming up the middle as a blitzer or standing up as a rusher off the edge. That is how Lloyd was used at Utah, and after seeing it translate from college to the NFL for Parsons, you have to wonder if the Eagles feel more confident it will translate for Lloyd as well.
If they do, Lloyd is an easy pick at No. 15. The Eagles place extreme value on anyone who impacts the passing game on offense or defense. Quarterbacks. Pass catchers. Pass blockers. Pass rushers. It is why they haven’t placed the emphasis on linebackers, who don’t impact the passing game the way the other defensive players do.
If the Eagles view Lloyd as being capable of rushing the passer, he could be the linebacker that gets them to break their much-discussed streak of not drafting one in the first round. Lloyd would bring the qualities they need at linebacker — speed and coverage ability — while bringing the pass rushing capability they require from defensive players they select in the top half of the draft.
Add Lloyd to Reddick and the Eagles would go from having no stand-up edge rushers they could count on to potentially having two elite ones they could move all over the field.
They could line both up at linebacker and send either one up the middle. They could have them start standing up at linebacker before moving them to the edge. They could have both on the field while also having their full starting defensive line. Reddick and Lloyd would give Jonathan Gannon a ton of flexibility on defense, something he didn’t have last season, while also improving their pass rush.
Of course, this all comes down to the Eagles evaluation of Lloyd.
But after their misevaluation of Parsons, you have to think they are spending extra time this year on Lloyd — and they could end up correcting the mistake they made last year.
You can reach Eliot Shorr-Parks on Twitter at @EliotShorrParks or email him at esp@94wip.com