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Eagles Draft a Tight End and Complete the Rumored Jonathan Greenard Trade
Published:
Birds action on day 2:
Greenard had been connected to the Eagles for at least a few weeks, then the rumors picked up going into Thursday night and the trade news is broken on Friday night.
Greenard is a 28-year-old EDGE who had 24.5 sacks in 2023 and 2024, the latter season culminating in a Pro Bowl nod. He only played 12 games last year and finished with three sacks and 10 TFL, and his availability was cut short due to a shoulder injury that required surgery. Based on what the Eagles gave up to get him (a third and a fourth), and based on the contract they are giving him, it is apparent that they are HIGH on this guy and think he’s gonna do great things in Vic Fangio’s system. We all join together in hoping he’s the next Reggie White and not the next Robert Quinn, because they went out and paid top dollar to bring him in.
RE: Eli Stowers, he was one of the top 3-4 tight ends in this class, and becomes the 2nd to come off the board. He is listed at 6’4″, 235 pounds, and played his last two seasons at Vandy with Diego Pavia after transferring from New Mexico State via Texas A&M. In his two years with the Commodores, he caught 111 passes for 1,407 yards and nine touchdowns.
Lance Zierlein wrote the overview at NFL.com:
Stowers is an explosive quarterback convert with just three years at the tight end position. He’s an excellent athlete with long arms but needs to keep filling out his frame. He’s a natural pass catcher with an outstanding catch radius and massive run-after-catch talent. While his route-running and contested-catch ability need work, he excels at moving the chains on screens/short catches. He has the speed to threaten downfield against linebackers. His run-blocking ceiling might be low, but his traits create above-average potential as a pass-catching “F” tight end, fitting the growing trend of utilizing two- and three-tight-end sets more heavily.
The Birds need a tight end to eventually take the baton from Dallas Goedert. Stowers hopefully becomes that guy. He’s a solid player and hopefully Sean Mannion has Stowers and Makai Lemon cooking in year one.
Some highlights:
Kevin has been writing about Philadelphia sports since 2009. He spent seven years in the CBS 3 sports department and started with the Union during the team's 2010 inaugural season. He went to the academic powerhouses of Boyertown High School and West Virginia University. email - k.kinkead@sportradar.com