Eagles drafts continue to be influenced by head coach Chip Kelly’s relationship with Oregon, writes Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Nine of the 15 players selected by Philadelphia during Kelly’s tenure have some connection to Oregon, where Kelly coached from 2007-12. While general manager Howie Roseman ultimately controls the draft board, Kelly doesn’t dispute that his opinion on certain players is affected by his past proximity to them. “I do believe I have a knowledge because I’ve seen them in person,” said the Eagles coach. “So I can weigh in on them with not just, ‘Hey, my evaluation of them on tape is this.’ . . . But it’s not a ‘Let’s take him because I saw him live.’ . . .We’re still going to go through the whole process and let everybody weigh in. There’s never been an instance, where ‘Hey, I feel this way about him but everybody else feels this way.'”
More notes from Philadelphia:
- Kelly spoke with reporters after the draft, and passed along some thoughts on seventh-rounder Beau Allen, a 6’2″, 331 pound defensive tackle from Nebraska, specifically regarding whether the Eagles were surprised Allen fell to them (per the Philly.com staff): “We were kind of holding our breath after we made our last pick, because it was such a long time until the next one,” said Kelly. “But it really depends. He’s a true nose tackle, so now you limit yourself to 3-4 teams taking Beau, but I think he fits. He’s in the same style that we teach. He’s got a good understanding of 3‑4 defense.”
- Philadelphia had hoped to select an offensive lineman at some point, but simply never got the chance, according to Reuben Frank of CSNPhilly.com. “I thought we’d have some opportunities to get some O‑linemen, but there was a run in the third round that was like nothing I’ve ever seen in my life,” said Roseman. “It was like player after player after player, and all of a sudden we looked back up and our board was depleted, and we weren’t going to reach. That hurt because we went in thinking that we’d get some guys. I think the [quality] offensive linemen went earlier. I did not think it was a great group overall.”
- ESPN’s Chris Mortensen believes Eagles receiver Jordan Matthews, a second-rounder from Vanderbilt, will be the 2014 Offensive Rookie of the Year, tweets Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean.
- Mel Kiper of ESPN gives the Eagles draft a “B+”, noting that he “loves” the selection of Matthews, and singles out fifth-round safety Ed Reynolds, whom Kiper believes could develop into a starter.
- Last night, we provided a list of the 15 undrafted free agents signed by Philadelphia.