He has been an Eagle since 2012, and the day the Eagles traded up in the first round of the NFL Draft to select Fletcher Cox represented a huge gain and a continued commitment to the defensive tackle group, so Cox understands the premium nature of the position. He understands that the Eagles didn’t necessarily need to add to the interior of the defensive line in the spring but having the chance to draft a player with special qualities, well, you just do it.
“We have a very talented room,” Cox said of his fellow defensive tackles. “We can all stay fresh and rotate and I think that’s what you always want to do there. It’s a long season. It’s a grind. The more you have at defensive tackle, the better.”
The Eagles entered the NFL Draft season with a fine-looking three-man rotation at defensive tackle – Cox, one of the greatest players in the NFL in the last decade; Javon Hargrave, a relentless playmaker who earned his first Pro Bowl nod in 2021; and Milton Williams, a third-round draft choice in ’21 who is someone the coaches are extremely excited about after his strong rookie campaign. Next in line were players like second-year man Marlon Tuipulotu, a sixth-round draft pick in 2021 who has a lot of promise; Renell Wren, a former fourth-round draft pick who spent two seasons in Cincinnati before signing in free agency here; and Marvin Wilson, signed in 2021 following the NFL Draft. He spent the season on the practice squad until a promotion to the active roster in the Week 18 game against Dallas and Wilson responded with three tackles in 19 snaps.
So, the Eagles didn’t feel they needed to trade up and select Georgia defensive tackle Jordan Davis on the first night of the 2022 NFL Draft, and that’s why doing what they did made even more sense. They trusted their board. They saw a player with “special” skills and traits and they went up and got him.
Look this is nothing new for a franchise that has been committed to defensive tackle for, oh, so long. Taking Corey Simon in the first…
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