Lane Johnson Verified account‏@Lanejohnson69

You know you're fat when you eat a triple cheeseburger and carry on a conversation like it never happened

Zach Ertz‏@ZERTZ_86

Great visit back in Philly today meeting everyone, even had my first Philly cheese steak. Big things ahead for The Eagles

Bennie .C. Logan ‏@da_king_son1827 Apr

s/o to all my Philly followers showing love this morning tho!!! Already loving the support and their attitude #excited

Matthew BarkleyVerified account‏@MattBarkley

So grateful for my family and all the coaches and players who helped me reach my dreams. Can’t wait to get started! #EaglesNation #BirdGang

Its big day for my family and I. Please do not call me between the times of 5:30 and 11. My phone line must be open pic.twitter.com/vxWabytmOi

Joe Kruger‏@jkruger99

I am excited to be an Eagle baby!!! Philly here I come! Much love to all the Utah fans out there thanks for all the support!!

Jordan PoyerVerified account‏@J_Poyer14

EAGLES!!!!!!!!!!!!

David King ‏@king_maximus90

Can't. Sleep

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This is from the Pac-12 media day, with now Eagles head coach Chip Kelly interviewing cornerback Jordan Poyer, who he selected in the seventh round of the NFL draft.



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... 10-inch hands.

Eagles head coach Chip Kelly is tuned in to the science of football, including the measurements of ankles for linemen.

Which brings us to hand size and quarterbacks.

Eagles passer Michael Vick has small hands, measuring an estimated 9 1-4 inches.
 
Nick Foles has enormous 10 5-8 inch hands.

Dennis Dixon has 9 3-4 inch hands.

Eagles fourth-round draft pick Matt Barkley has huge 10 1-4 inch hands.

What does it mean?

Some scouts feel Geno Smith's hands, which meaasured 9 1-4 inches, on the low side for a quarterback were partly why he fumbled  32 times.

Hand size, or the lack thereof is one of the reasons quarterback Daunte Culpepper slid down the draft board to a dome team (Vikings) in 1992. 

Smaller hands can create a grip issue particularly in
cold weather.

Is hand size an issue for Kelly?

E.J. Manuel, who the Eagles were sweet on, has 10 1-4 inch hands. He was drafted in the first round by the Bills.

By the way, Andrew Luck has 10-inch hands, Robert Griffin III 9 1-2 inch hands, Russell Wilson 10 1-4 inch hands.

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Think Matt Barkley gets No. 7?

Quarterback Matt Barkley was told the Chiefs, with head coach Andy Reid, would trade up to the first pick of the third day of the draft to select him.

The Chiefs had the second pick in the fourth round.

But the Eagles got there first as they shipped the Jaguars a seventh-round pick and their own fourth-rounder, three spots below K.C.'s, to draft Barkley.

"I wasn't going to be on the board long today and the Chiefs were definitely looking to trade up," Barkley said. "But the Eagles beat them to it."

Eagles head coach Chip Kelly wasn't at Matt Barkley's pro day or But his workout with one of the organization's scouts.

Kelly is convinced Barkley's throwing shoulder - the sprain that sidelined him for the Trojans' bowl game - won't be an issue.

"He can deliver the ball," Kelly said. "We're not trying to knock over milk cartons at a county fair."

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Daniel Jeremiah, who used to work for the firm, says Eagles general manager Howie Roseman was high on Matt Barkley last year.

Here's some Barkley highlights:



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Hey, we can all use a few pounds.

Third round, 67th overall: Benny Logan, DT, LSU

Height: 6-2. Weight: 309. 40-yard dash: 5.25 (estimated).

Upside: Strong with room to grow. Long arms (34-inches). Enormous hands (10 1-4 inches). Takes on blocks and ball carriers. Scouts like his burst in pass rush. Can play nose tackle, three-technique, five-technique.

Downside: Scouts think he needs to turn flab into muscle. Could use more explosion. At this point an inside rotational guy.

Summary: With a little luck and nurturing in Chip Kelly’s all-encompassing player development program Logan could stick around long enough to be a three-down player.

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Lane Johnson, Chip Kelly.

Evaluating this sequence of photos it's apparent Zach Ertz did make that hotly disputed scoring catch for the Stanford Cardinal to hand Chip Kelly and Oregon their only loss last season.

Kelly and Ertz discussed the play at the scouting combine.

"When I first walked into the meeting room with him he asked me if it was a catch," Ertz said. "And I said, of course it was a catch. He said, 'alright, the film doesn't lie.' "

Later Ertz sent Kelly a note thanking him for the interview at the combine. The letter ended "P.S. It was a catch."

"I think at the end of the day I just wanted to remind him what happened when we played against them and just to get the last laugh," said Ertz, who caught 11 passes for 106 yards in that game.

Ertz's grab knotted the game and forced overtime, the Cardinal prevailing by a field goal.

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Second round, 35th overall: Zach Ertz, TE, Stanford.

Height: 6-5. Weight: 249. 40-yard dash: 4.76. Vertical leap: 30 ½. Long jump: 9-3. Bench press: 24. 

Zach Ertz, Eagles second-round pick.

Upside: Good hands. Huge hands measuring 9 1-4 inches. Solid route runner. Sets defenders up. Led Cardinals with 69 receptions for 898 yards (13.0 average) and six touchdowns.

Downside: Lean-framed. Not much of a blocker. Away from the combine lights ran 4.68 in the 40. One-year starter, although he played behind Coby Fleener, the stellar TE for the Colts.

Summary: Ertz’s size, hands and route-running ability gives the Eagles another weapon in what sounds very much like a New England Patriots style multi-tight end attack.

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Hunt...6-8, 275, Estonia.

Per reports the Eagles are interested in selecting a quarterback with the third pick of the second round.

But there is plenty of other talent out there including a chunk of players with first-round grades.

Among others, the group is composed of safeties Jonathan Cyprien (Florida International) and Matt Elam (Florida), nose tackle Jesse Williams (Alabama) Margus Hunt (SMU).

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Chip Kelly couldn't say enough about Lane Johnson, the offensive tackle he selected with his first overall pick as head coach of the Eagles, and No. 4 overall Thursday night.



The way Kelly explained it, the Eagles knew they were going to get one of the top-rated guys on their board. Offensive tackles Eric Fisher and Luke Joeckel went 1 and 2 to the Chiefs and the Jaguars. The Dolphins traded up from 12 to 3 to select Dion Jordan, the rush linebacker who played for Kelly at Oregon.

"We had four guys at the top … exactly how the draft went," Kelly said. "It was the three OT’s and Dion. That’s why we felt comfortable going into this. No matter how it fell we weren’t going to be sitting there at 4 going we didn’t get our guy. But it was just that group of four. So even if anybody traded ahead of us I knew they couldn’t pick two people so we were still going to be OK."

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This is the last Eagles' draft for Mike Dougherty, the Ridley Park resident retiring as video director effective after the weekend.

For the 32nd year Dougherty is stationed in New York City to relay the Eagles' picks to the NFL. Dougherty has seen it all and then some.


One of the few things that hasn't changed over the years is the phone system. He's tethered to the  Eagles by what today's standards looks almost like an antique phone.

In N.Y., Dougherty gets Eagles picks on this phone.

"It's gotten so big, it's gotten so crazy," Dougherty said of the draft. "It's a major thing now."

Dougherty spent some drafts with Jimmy Gallagher, the longtime public relations and personnel guy with the Eagles. Gallagher actually made some picks. Commissioner Roger Goodell inquired about Gallagher Thursday.

"He was just asking about Jimmy Gal," Dougherty said. "The Commissioner always asks. He never forgets."

Dougherty will miss the draft. He won't miss the time to be with his wife Marge and their children in retirement. After 37 years as the video director and 32 years making the Eagles' picks, he's earned it.

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Manuel's hand measured 10 1-4 inches.

Among the interesting points brought to my attention is the reported hand size of Geno Smith, one of the top rated quarterbacks in this draft.

The Eagles supposedly are hot on the trail of Smith, who they personally worked-out at West Virginia and brought in to tour the NovaCare Complex.

At the same time Eagles head coach Chip Kelly pays keen attention to the science of football, whether it's 40-yard dash times, measurements of ankle bones. protein shakes, heart monitors, sleep monitors, etc ... 

Which brings us to hand size. Smith's hand length measured 9 1-4 inches, which is on the low side for a quarterback. In the eyes of some scouts that lack of grip is the reason he fumbled  32 times.

Hand size, or the lack thereof is one of the reasons quarterback Daunte Culpepper slid down the draft board to a dome team (Vikings). By the way, in that same draft the cold weather Eagles selected Donovan McNabb, who had 10-inch hands.

Is hand size an issue for Kelly?

Stay tuned.

E.J. Manuel, another quarterback the Eagles have interest in, has 10 1-4 inch hands.

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Leaving no stone unturned.

The bookmakers at Bovada set the odds for the NFL draft.

Check out my mock draft and you'd take the over at quarterback.

Here are more odds:
 

Who will be 1st Pick Overall?           

Luke Joeckel                 -200     

Eric Fisher                    +150   

                                  

How many QB's selected in 1st Rd?               

Over                              1½ (+150)

Under                            1½  (-200)

How many Safeties selected 1st Rd?          

Over/Under                               2½

How many WR's selected 1st Rd?              

Over/Under                               3½

How many offensive players selected 1st Round?       

Over/Under                               13½

How many defensive players selected 1st Round?      

Over/Under                               18½

Draft Position

Geno Smith       

Over                              8½  (-175)

Under                            8½ (+135)

Matt Barkley     

Over                              37½ (+170)

Under                            37½  (-250)

Marcus Lattimore           

Over                              84½  (-200)

Under                            84½ (+150)

Tavon Austin     

Over                              13½ (+150)

Under                            13½  (-200)

Manti Te'o         

Over                              25½ (+150)

Under                            25½  (-200)

Eddie Lacy        

Over                              22½  (-200)

Under                            22½ (+150)

Who will be drafted 1st?

Justin Hunter                   -250     

DeAndre Hopkins           +170

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