By Jesse Larch, Sports Talk Philly staff writer 
The first draft of the Joe Douglas era ended with Eagles de facto general manager Howie Roseman calling for a celebratory beer and cigar with the new vice president of player personnel.
Although they are not world champions yet, the Eagles certainly have to feel good heading into next season.
Douglas's approach appeared to put an emphasis on production at the college level, over measurables.
This approach led to the Eagles acquiring a player with the most sacks in the draft and the second-most tackles for loss in Southeastern Conference history, a player who led the PAC-12 in pass breakups, a player who led the NCAA in interceptions, North Carolina's all-time leader in yards per catch, the FBS all-time leading rusher, and a player with the second-most interceptions in Nebraska history.
While the draft class is filled with record-breakers, two players make this draft class truly special, and those are the first two players that the Eagles selected.
Yes, Rasul Douglas, Mack Hollins, and Donnel Pumphrey all have high ceilings, but they also were drafted in their expected range for a reason, whether it is technique, injuries or size.
Derek Barnett and Sidney Jones provide the Eagles with two players who were rated as Top-10 prospects in this draft at one time. Only one other team left the draft being able to say that, the San Francisco 49ers, who selected Solomon Thomas third overall and Reuben Foster 31st overall.
The Eagles got their Top-10 talents at 14th and 43rd overall, and the experts seemed to think so as well:
I love Philadelphia's first two picks of this draft. Derek Barnett is a stud, and Sidney Jones may be the best CB in the draft when healthy
— Sam Monson (@PFF_Sam) April 30, 2017
.@NFL's comps for Eagles top picks:
-Derek Barnett: Terrell Suggs
-Sidney Jones: Marcus PetersThis could be a top-10 defense soon.
— Joe Giglio (@JoeGiglioSports) April 30, 2017
Barnett and Jones both slid to the Eagles due to poor workouts, but fortunately, that did not scare the Eagles away.
Barnett's stock began to slide after running a 4.88 40 yard dash when other more touted prospects eclipsed his time by a whole tenth of a second or more.
With 13 teams allowing Barnett to slide to the Eagles, they ignored two important facts. Barnett was participating in the combine days removed from a bout with the flu, and had more sacks than any player in the draft, breaking Reggie White's school sack record at Tennessee, and finishing with the second most tackles for loss in SEC history.
In terms of production, Barnett was the best defensive lineman in the draft by a long shot. That includes first-overall pick Myles Garrett:
| Myles Garrett | Derek Barnett | |
| Games | 34 | 39 |
| Tackles for Loss | 47 | 52 |
| Sacks | 31 | 33 |
| Games vs SEC | 18 | 18 |
| TFL vs SEC | 23.5 | 42 |
| Sacks vs SEC | 11 | 28 |
Barnett posted the better career numbers in the same number of seasons as Garrett while playing in the same conference.
Barnett really separated himself from Garrett when facing the tougher competition of the SEC. Garrett crumbled against tougher competition, averaging 0.61 sacks per game and 1.30 tackles for loss. In the same number of games against the SEC, Barnett averaged 1.55 sacks per game and 2.33 tackles for loss, essentially doubling Garrett's output.
While Garrett struggled against strong competition, Barnett thrived, boding well for when he makes the jump to the NFL. Bucky Brooks, a draft expert for NFL.com, even predicted that Barnett will lead the league in sacks before Garrett.
Sidney Jones, the Eagles second-round pick was considered one of, if not the most talented, cornerback in what was said to be an elite cornerback class. Like Barnett, however, Jones had a fiasco while trying to impress scouts. At Jones's pro day in March, he suffered a ruptured Achilles on the last drill of the day.
As a result, the top prospect began his slide out of the first round, and potentially even past Day 2 of the draft. Jones stock was slightly rejuvenated when he released a doctor's note prior to the draft that reported his Achilles was healing normally and that Jones was expected to make a complete recovery sometime this fall.
Jones allowed less than 50 percent of his 48 targets to be completed last season in the pass-heavy PAC-12 conference. He also picked off three balls and broke up four passes.
Opposing quarterbacks had a rating of 42.1 when passing in Jones' territory. Jones averaged less than three and a half targets per game in 2016 and did not allow a single touchdown, a testament to his incredible coverage ability.
If Howie Roseman's post-selection press conference told us anything, it is that the Eagles feel very confident that they will get Sidney Jones at 100 percent. Roseman discussed the ample research that the team did into this injury and their willingness to be patient with Jones to ensure that he returns to full strength before going onto the field.
You can only judge a draft haul on upside, and in Jones and Barnett, the Eagles found two players with seemingly limitless ceilings. The Eagles used their first two picks in the draft on a potential league sack leader and shutdown cornerback.
It will take time, but if these two players become what many believe that they will, the Eagles will look back to this draft a key moment in the team's history.
