As we near the 2020 NFL draft, the Eagles are expected to have 10 selections and a real opportunity to pick up some important young players for the future of the franchise.
During his time as GM (2010-14, 2016-present), Howie Roseman has had some hits and he's had some misses.
Over the next few weeks, we're going to rank all of his draft picks (excluding the 2015 year when Chip Kelly was in charge) by round.
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Here's how I'd rank Howie Roseman's 14 picks in the fourth round:
1. Brandon Boykin (2012, No. 123)
He didn't last long in Philly but had a really high peak. The corner out of Georgia had just seven career interceptions and had six of them in the 2013 season as the Eagles' nickel cornerback. He played all 16 games in three straight seasons for the Eagles before Chip Kelly traded him to Pittsburgh in August 2015. He played that year in Pittsburgh and bounced around to a few more teams but never played in a game after that year as injuries took over.
2. Avonte Maddox (2018, No. 125)
Another small nickel corner, Maddox is entering Year 3 out of Pittsburgh. In his first two NFL seasons, he's had ups and downs but has shown off his versatility, playing outside corner, nickel and safety. It's unclear exactly how he fits in long-term but Jim Schwartz seems to love him. He can take over that top spot soon.
3. Jaylen Watkins (2014, No. 101)
Despite doing it in two stints, the Florida product played the first four years of his NFL career in Philly as a versatile defensive back. He played in 36 games with five starts. He missed the 2018 season with the Chargers but returned in 2019 and played in 14 games with three starts.
4. Josh Sweat (2018, No. 130)
After this upcoming season, there's a good chance Sweat will move ahead of Watkins. The defensive end from Florida State basically had a redshirt season in 2018 but was a rotational player in 2019 and ended up with four sacks and 10 QB hits. He has some juice.
5. Clay Harbor (2010, No. 125)
In three seasons with the Eagles, the tight end caught 47 passes for 421 yards and four touchdowns. He then played three more seasons with the Jaguars before finishing his career with the Lions and Patriots in 2016. He hasn't played since.
6. Alex Henery (2011, No. 120)
It was risky to draft a kicker in the fourth round but if you get your kicker for the next decade it's a worthwhile risk. The Eagles had Henery for three seasons. Never known for a strong leg, at least Henery was accurate. As a rookie in 2011, he made 24 of 27 field goals (88.9%), which is the most accurate kicking season in Eagles franchise history.
7. Casey Matthews (2011, No. 116)
Coming from an incredible football family, expectations were high for the linebacker from Oregon and he failed to live up to them. He played in 64 games (16 starts) for the Eagles from 2011-14 and never played in the league again.
8. Mack Hollins (2017, No. 118)
As a rookie receiver from North Carolina, Hollins showed some promise when he caught 16 balls for 226 yards and a touchdown. But then groin injuries derailed his career. He missed the entire 2018 season. In 2019 he returned but somehow went eight straight games (203 snaps) without a catch before the Eagles cut him. Hollins ended up in Miami, where his catch-less streak continued.
9. Matt Barkley (2013, No. No. 98)
The high-profile QB from USC played in just three games in two seasons for the Eagles before they traded him to the Cardinals in 2015. They got a seventh-round pick that turned into linebacker Joe Walker the following season.
10. Keenan Clayton (2010, No. 121)
During a time in Eagles history when the Birds could have really used a fourth-round linebacker working out, it didn't happen for Clayton, who was kind of ahead of his time in terms of linebacker size. He played in 21 games over two seasons and after spending 2012 with the Raiders never played again.
11. Trevard Lindley (2010, No. 105)
The Kentucky cornerback played in 11 games (1 start) as a rookie and had an interception but was cut before the next season and came back a couple more times but never played in the NFL again.
12. Mike Kafka (2010, No. 122)
Now the Chiefs' fast-rising quarterbacks coach and likely future head coach, Kafka wasn't a very good NFL player. The Northwestern QB played in four games with the Eagles in 2011 and completed 11 of 16 passes for 107 yards and two INTs. He never threw another pass in the league after that season.
13. Shareef Miller (2019, No. 138)
The Eagles used the very last pick in the fourth round of the 2019 draft to take the local Philly and Penn State product and Miller simply didn't play as a rookie. He was inactive for almost the entire season, so he has a chance to move up the list.
14. Donnel Pumphrey (2017, No. 132)
Howie Roseman called the 2017 running back draft class "historic" and the Eagles traded up in the fourth round to get a guy who never played a snap in the NFL and is now in the XFL. Pump was prolific in college but the Eagles tried to change his play style and he never looked like he belonged.
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