The Philadelphia Eagles, like the 31 other NFL teams around the league were keeping a keen eye on LSU’s 42-25 victory over Clemson in Monday night’s National Championship game.
With several of the stars from Monday night’s contest set to enter the NFL, there are guys who could provide Philadelphia with star-power, versatility and dynamic players in the first 60 picks.
The Eagles need a game-changing wide receiver, cornerback, safety help and a litany of other holes to fill.
With Clemson and LSU providing some of the top players transitioning from college to the NFL in recent years, here are 7 participants from the National Championship game that the Eagles could target in the first two rounds of the 2020 NFL draft.
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1. Justin Jefferson — WR — LSU
The Eagles can use an explosive playmaker on the outside and Justin Jefferson is a huge reason that Joe Burrow will be the No. 1 pick. Jefferson can run every route, he creates big plays and his explosiveness would put the Eagles offense on another level.
Against the Clemson Tigers on Monday night, Jefferson had 9 catches for 106 yards, including this video game style move that left one Clemson defender on shaky ground.
2. K’Lavon Chaisson — pass rusher — LSU
The Eagles can get younger along the defensive line and the LSU star wouldn’t be a bad player to start with. Chaisson is a Danielle Hunter clone and is versatile enough to play on the edge or in space.
3. Grant Delpit — safety — LSU
Malcolm Jenkins and Rodney McLeod could both be on the move this offseason, although the Eagles are likely to keep one at safety. Delpit is rangy and could be a perfect fit to learn from the veterans. The 2019 Jim Thorpe Award winner is viewed as one of the top two safeties coming out of the 2020 NFL Draft class and the type of young and elite playmaking talent the Eagles need.
4. Kristian Fulton — CB — LSU
With Jalen Mills set to hit free agency, the Eagles could replace the former LSU cornerback with one of the current Tiger greats. Fulton and A.J. Terrell from Clemson both struggled in coverage.
5. A.J. Terrell — CB- Clemson
Terrell is a thin player, in the mold of current Eagles cornerback, Sidney Jones. Terrell struggled in coverage at times against the explosive LSU wideouts but is still a player to watch.
6. Isaiah Simmons — LB-S — Clemson
The Eagles don’t normally put a ton of value into the linebacker position, but Simmons isn’t your typical linebacker. A versatile hybrid, Simmons can play linebacker or safety, allowing Malcolm Jenkins to play an even versatile game at safety.
In this new era of spread offenses and mobile quarterbacks, having a guy like Simmons who can go from elite pass rusher to locking down the middle on a pass play makes him extremely valuable for any style of defense.
During the first three drives of the National Championship game, Simmons line up at linebacker, cornerback and edge rusher.
7. Tee Higgins — WR — Clemson
Higgins is a player that has been mentioned with the Eagles anytime a mock draft comes up. He went to Clemson, so he’s played in huge games throughout his career. At 6’4″ Higgins is a player in the mold of Alshon Jeffery and probably what the Eagles thought they were getting in Arcega-Whiteside.
In the loss to LSU, Higgins had 1 explosive carry for a 36-yard touchdown.
Higgins also had 3 catches for 52 yards.
