The Eagles are barely into the countdown to the 2026 season, but the 2027 draft picture is already taking shape. With college football kicking off, it’s the perfect time to start tracking which prospects might eventually fit in Philadelphia.
This week’s group includes five names worth watching, and there’s a little something for the Eagles at almost every level of the roster: a big-play receiver, an interior lineman, a Penn State center, a tight end with first-round upside, and a running back who could wind up being one of the most explosive players in the class.
Bryant Wesco Jr. is the kind of receiver who jumps off the screen. The Clemson wideout, listed at 6-foot-2 and 195 pounds, was a freshman All-American in 2024 and made a habit of turning routine touches into chunk gains.
A spinal contusion cost him the final six games of his sophomore season, but he now looks healthy again and ready to show off the speed that made him such a fun player to watch. Philadelphia just used a first-round pick on Makai Lemon, so Wesco wouldn’t be an immediate need, but his long-term fit alongside Lemon and DeVonta Smith makes sense if he lands in the late first or second round.
Kade Pieper is built a little differently. The Iowa guard checks in at 6-foot-3, 298 pounds, and while he’s not the biggest interior lineman, his movement stands out.
He was dominant as a run blocker last season at right guard and brings enough athleticism to handle any of the three interior spots. That matters for the Eagles, especially with Landon Dickerson and Cam Jurgens both dealing with injuries and getting older.
Pieper could be the kind of eventual replacement Philadelphia likes to have in the pipeline.
Penn State’s Brock Riker is another interior line name to keep close tabs on. The new starting center for the Nittany Lions is a redshirt sophomore, and he’s already coming off freshman All-American honors after starting 12 games and allowing zero sacks in 438 pass-blocking snaps.
The Texas State transfer looks like a breakout candidate in Matt Campbell’s first season. There’s also a Philadelphia connection worth noting: Campbell and Nick Sirianni are close friends, which gives the Eagles a cleaner line of information on Penn State players moving forward.
At tight end, Jamari Johnson is the one to circle. Oregon has handed the job over to another pass-catching tight end after Kenyon Sadiq, and Johnson brings the kind of ball skills that can push a player into the first-round conversation.
The Eagles already spent second-round capital on Eli Stowers, so another major investment at tight end probably wouldn’t be the plan. Still, with Goedert on a one-year deal and Stowers developing slower than some expected, Johnson is the type of player worth monitoring as the season unfolds.
Then there’s Kewan Lacy, who could force his way into the top tier of the running back class if he puts together another season like 2025. He ran for 1,567 yards and 24 touchdowns, and if that production holds, first-round buzz will follow.
That may be more than Howie Roseman wants to spend at the position, but the Eagles’ future at running back isn’t exactly settled. Saquon Barkley’s contract runs through the 2028 season, Tank Bigsby is headed for free agency after this year, and Will Shipley hasn’t done much.
Lacy, listed at 5-foot-11 and 205 pounds, has the kind of burst that makes him impossible to ignore.
In Other News...
Jayden Daniels Gives Eagles An Early Week 1 Problem
Week 1 already comes with the usual opening-day uncertainty, and for the Eagles, the first defensive question is how to handle a Commanders attack that looks much different than the one they prepared for a year ago. Jayden Daniels is back as Washingtons offensive leader, and he will have plenty of help around him with additions like Stefon Diggs and Chig Okonkwo joining a group that already includes Terry McLaurin. Even before the first snap, that gives Philadelphia a lot to sort through.
The supporting cast around Daniels adds another layer of concern, especially with players such as edge rusher Odafe Oweh and linebacker Sonny Styles part of the broader matchup picture. Washington has clearly tried to raise its ceiling on both sides of the ball, and the opener is now less about easing into the season than about seeing how quickly the Eagles can answer a more dangerous-looking division rival. For a Week 1 game, that is already a pretty serious test. [Read more 🡒]
Eagles Have A Pass Catching Problem Beyond DeVonta Smith
DeVonta Smith gives the Eagles a dependable starting point in the passing game, but the bigger question is what comes after him. The rest of the wideout room is less settled, with Makai Lemon and Dontayvion Wicks carrying their own questions, and the tight end depth behind Dallas Goedert does not offer much comfort if the offense needs more reliable targets.
What makes the issue more pressing is the overall shape of the receiving group, which does not appear built to absorb much attrition. Injuries could quickly thin out a pass-catching unit that already has limited margin for error, leaving the Eagles leaning heavily on Smith and Goedert while waiting to see whether the other options can make themselves part of the answer. [Read more 🡒]
Jalen Hurts Faces One Eagles Test That Will Define His 2026
Jalen Hurts enters 2026 with a familiar kind of pressure in Philadelphia, where the standard is less about surviving the season than proving he can keep the Eagles offense moving upward. The benchmarks attached to that expectation are straightforward enough: a completion rate at 67 percent or better, something in the neighborhood of 3,800 passing yards, and more touchdown production through the air. It is the kind of statistical line that would signal a quarterback not just managing games, but helping define them.
Sean Mannions arrival as offensive coordinator adds another layer to the evaluation, because Hurts is also expected to run more often in this setup. For an Eagles offense that has leaned on his dual-threat skill set from the start, the question is how the balance will look when the passing game has to carry more of the burden and the ground game becomes part of the equation rather than the whole identity. The numbers will matter, but so will the shape of the offense around him, and whether Hurts can meet those targets while still looking like the player Philadelphia trusts most when the stakes rise. [Read more 🡒]