We all know the real judge of the class will be how they play and not just the first season but 2-3 seasons into their careers.
BUT all we have to go on right now is the experts analysis, former GMs, former scouts, and the 100s other writers and draft gurus who do pre draft rankings and analysis.
And yes while you can find 1 or 2 scouts or experts who agree with every pick the Eagles made and where, the mass majority of these experts agree Smith was a reach at pick 26 and Huff was a reach in the 3rd round.
Add to how they handled the Desean situation, how they botched the first round admittedly with the players they really wanted, and then selecting two former Oregon players when better players were possibly available yeah I am worried.
Selecting defensive players in the later rounds is not the same as selecting elite prospects in the first 1-3 rounds. We selected 2 WRs in the first 3 rounds out of need. We selected and reached for Smith in the first round out of need. So again its worrying when we create that need and then reach after being hammered to death about BPA.
Hope it all works out but based on what we know now, its questionable.
How did they botch the first round exactly? The players they wanted were all taken! "Well, they could have traded up", I hear you say. But it takes two to make that happen. Who knows what other teams were asking for? The Eagles didn't have a lot of picks to give and Buffalo's absurd offer raised everyone's expectations for return value. So they stayed put and hoped that one of the 6 players would fall to them. It didn't happen. Who should they have selected at 22 that would have been a slam dunk over what they got? This isn't a Brandon Graham over Earl Thomas situation when the clear best player available, who also happened to fill a position of need, was on the board and they just didn't take him. Who could they have taken that you would have said "that is a great pick" (and don't you dare say Johnny Manziel)?
As to the rest of the draft, I don't really care where these guys come from. If Chip is confident that the guys he selected from Oregon or the wider Pac-12 can produce at the NFL level, than I have to trust him. It may be that he picks those kids because he knows first hand what they can do? And remember their draft class from last year, Chip's first as a head coach, included 4 guys who contributed in a big way all season long. Did we forget already how good that draft class was and could continue to be?
The DeSean thing, I agree, was botched. They should have gotten something for him. Nevermind his attitude or contract situation, he's still a top 15 WR in this league. But despite that, I still think their WR corps this year is better than the one last year.
2013 WR = Jackson, Cooper, Avant, Maehl
2014 WR = Maclin, Cooper, Matthews, Huff
And lets not forget that they added Sproles for a 5th round pick. He will be listed as a RB, but will likely catch a lot of passes. And the entire offense will now have a whole year in Kelly's system and will be that much more comfortable, there will be stability at QB and an influx of fresh, young legs.
On the defensive side of the ball, they made moves to attempt to shore up the secondary (adding Jenkins and Carroll, drafting Watkins and Reynolds). While none of these were big time additions, at best they can be considered marginal upgrades and at worst they provide depth where we didn't have it before. And they added a true pass rushing OLB, something the team desperately needed.
So the offense is better, the defense is as good or better. I ask again, why are you so worried? I think it's the Negadelphia in you.