Eagles Trade Up, Select Offensive Tackle Andre Dillard in First Round of Draft

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By Paul Bowman, Sports Talk Philly Editor

2017 was the last time that the Eagles made a first-round selection. It was the year that the Birds selected defensive end Derek Barnett. It was the year Philadelphia hosted the draft.

Of course, it was also the year the franchise won it’s first Super Bowl.

On Thursday night, the Eagles made their first selection on the first day of the draft since then, making Andre Dillard, a tackle from Washington State, the 22nd overall pick.

#Eagles select Andre Dillard, tackle, Washington State pic.twitter.com/IbY9pPj0Dk

— Sports Talk Philly (@sportstalkphl) April 26, 2019

Dillard checks all of the boxes for what the Eagles are looking for in an offensive lineman.

Dillard is a big locker room guy that should thrive in as well as contribute to the Eagles culture immediately.

From a play standpoint, Dillard has the potential to be an elite tackle with excellent quickness and mobility. He may not be as mobile as center Jason Kelce, but having two offensive lineman getting down field like that regularly will do wonders for the running and screen games.

Dillard was also a four-year starter at Washington State, where he started each of his team’s 39 games over his final three years. The Birds will hope that health and conditioning will carry over.

The Eagles will be counting on Dillard as they payed a rather hefty price to move up just three picks. The move leaves the franchise with only four more picks in the remaining six rounds.

The Eagles are set to have two of those four remaining picks in the second round on Friday night. The Eagles have been connected to a few running backs and safeties expected to go in that area, so those are two positions to watch tomorrow night.