Let’s start a Thursday morning with some Eagles and NFL Combine news:

Mixed feelings on the Eagles drafting Trotter Jr. One on hand, it would be sick to see the Axeman’s son wearing the same uniform his dad wore. On the other hand, it would make me, and presumably you, feel old as hell.

In terms of actual football prowess, he’s certainly got the NFL pedigree and DNA. He played three seasons at Clemson coming out of St Joe’s Prep, logging in 2022 and 2023 a combined 176 tackles, 12 sacks, four forced fumbles, four interceptions, and 10 PBUs. The best game I remember watching him play at Clemson was the 2022 ACC championship game, when he sacked Drake Maye three times and logged nine tackles.

My favorite draft analyst is Lance Zierlein, who at NFL.com comped Trotter Jr. to KC linebacker Nick Bolton:

Inside linebacker who plays with dogged determination and a nose for the football that helps him pack out the stat sheet. Trotter comes from NFL bloodlines and operates with consistency, play strength and a willingness to do the dirty work. He’s quick to diagnose and moves with exceptional body control and footwork to play around bodies and get to the rock. He’s not very big or long, but his football IQ makes it a moot point. He has adequate pursuit speed with good short-area burst and real talent in getting to the quarterback as a blitzer. Trotter can get to the ball with clear eyes and above-average efficiency and has a chance to be a long-time starter in the league.

They’ve got him listed at 6’0″, 230, so one inch and one pound taller and larger than Nakobe Dean coming out of Georgia. That’s the one knock on him, the physical attributes. He’s described as more of an instinct player and less of an athletic freak. When you go through the various projections, experts have him going late 2nd round or early third round, where the Eagles are expected to have a compensatory pick. Right now they own 22, 50, and 53, so a late 1st rounder and two in the middle of the 2nd. Whether that’s enough for them to pull the trigger is hard to say, but linebacker always feels like a position of need and nothing they ever address in the 1st or 2nd round. Prior to Dean, who was considered a value pick after sliding down the board, the last three linebackers they drafted were Davion Taylor, Shaun Bradley, and Joe Walker. You’d have to go back to Jordan Hicks in 2015 to find the last time they drafted an LB who turned out to be a consistent contributor.