Every single draft pick is a risk, from the first pick on Thursday night to the last pick on Saturday.
It is the general manager’s job to figure out what risks are worth taking and what risks are, simply put, too risky.
There might be no better example of that than Georgia linebacker Nakobe Dean.
On Friday night, Dean continued to fall due in part to medical concerns about a pectoral injury, Eagles general manager Howie Roseman had a decision to make.
Should he take Dean, deciding that a projected first-round talent at a position of need for the Eagles was simply too good to pass up?
Or should he pass, deciding that Dean sliding due to medical and size concerns was a red flag and simply too risky to use a 3rd-round pick on?
Roseman had a decision to make.
He made the right one.
Yes, there is risk involved with selecting Dean, but because Roseman was willing to take that risk that the Eagles might have landed the steal of the draft, landing the kind of player that media could be pointing to for years as a mid-round talent that changed a team.
Standing 6-foot, 225 pounds, Dean has the chance to be the special player the Eagles have been missing at linebacker. The 2021 Butkus Award winner for best linebacker in college football, Dean has the best natural play-making instincts the Eagles have had at the position in a long time.
“That's been my experience with players,” Head coach Nick Sirianni said. “Guys that are highly instinctive they just find a way to make plays over and over and over and over again.”
Dean certainly did just that at Georgia, finishing with 72 tackles, 10.5 tackles for a loss, six sacks, five pass deflections, two interceptions and one touchdown in 15 games last season.
He wasn’t the first player on the Georgia defense drafted, but according to many he was the best on the field last season for a defense that is considered the best in college football history.
Now, because of Roseman’s willingness to bet on his medical staff, Dean is an Eagle.
“I think I called our doctors three, four times to see am I missing something?,” Roseman said. “We brought him in. Am I missing something? Because obviously this guy is way higher on our board.”
Both Dean and the Eagles said on Friday night that he will be on the field next week for OTAs, which indicate there really is no concern about an injury, and makes it seem like the speculation he could miss a large portion of his rookie year due to the potential need for surgery was wrong.
“That was the thing that was so surprising and mind-boggling,” Dean said. “It was never … I went to doctors, got second opinions and everything, and nobody, nobody said I should have surgery. Nobody had told me I had to have surgery.”
Dean was not the only big risk Roseman has taken so far in the draft.
Roseman’s first selection, Georgia defensive tackle Jordan Davis, also comes with massive risk. Davis is a special athlete, but he comes into the NFL with concerns about his weight and his ability to be an impact pass rusher. If Davis could rush the passer he would have been the No. 1 overall pick. Instead, he fell outside the top 10. He fell for a reason — other general managers didn’t want to take the risk Davis would improve as a pass rusher, as if he doesn’t, he won’t be worth a top pick.
Roseman did take that risk, and as a result, the Eagles have now landed two Georgia defensive players in the first three rounds, and arguably the best two.
Dean was the best player on the defense. Jordan Davis was the best athlete. Together, they could become the new backbone of the Eagles defense, players that change the unit in a big way both on-and-off the field.
Or, the medical issues could impact Dean. The pectoral injury other teams were worried about could be an issue. Davis might never be anything more than a run stopper, and his weight could prevent him from playing meaningful snaps.
Both were risks for different reasons. But to Roseman, they were risks worth taking — and he deserves credit for being willing to take the risk other general managers wouldn’t.