With Marqise Lee off the board at 39, the Eagles felt they had to act fast. They traded with the Tennessee Titans for pick 42 and secured one of their wide receiver targets.
Jordan Matthews, a 6'3", 212-pound receiver out of Vanderbilt is the newest Eagle.
Matthews was one of the players listed in our first-round preview on Thursday as a potential wide receiver target, but here is a more detailed scouting report on the newest Eagles receiver.
The Eagles obviously had a need at wide receiver after the release on DeSean Jackson and Matthews comes in as a different kind of receiver. His size is the first thing that should be appealing. Expect better hands than Riley Cooper and a bigger frame than Jeremy Maclin and you can see why Matthews fits in right away.
Matthews also has the ability to play inside as a slot receiver and on the outside. He route-running ability is solid and he knows how to adjust when tracking the ball, making him a potential deep threat for Nick Foles.
His hands are excellent and he has the ability to fight for catches through traffic, another reason he is appealing in the slot.
The Eagles also had to be intrigued by Matthews' blocking ability. With LeSean McCoy and Darren Sproles being key players out of the backfield, Matthews is a player that doesn't mind getting his hands dirty and blocking for a teammate. That could go a long way to the offense as a whole.
It's hard to say that Matthews is the guy that replaces the production that DeSean Jackson left behind. That said, he was the SEC's all-time leader in receptions and yards and in his senior season, caught 112 passes for 1,477 yards and seven touchdowns, so he knows how to be the go-to guy. With some maturity at the pro level, he could turn into a star. After all, he is related to Hall-of-Famer Jerry Rice.
There aren't too many negatives that come with Matthews. He has some concentration issues which can be tough to deal with at times. Most notably, he dropped a pass in Vanderbilt's bowl game against Ole Miss this season. He also doesn't provide the dynamic aspect that Jackson did as some scouts have questioned his creativity with the ball following the catch.
All in all, this is a solid pick for the Eagles to grab a really good wide receiver prospect while he was still on the board. There's no telling at 54 that any of the targets the Eagles had would have been there so they made the move to get him.
For sure, this is an improvement on what Jason Avant provided the Eagles in the slot last season. Coupled with the type of production you could get on the outside with Cooper and Maclin, in the backfield with McCoy and Sproles, and inside with tight ends Brent Celek and Zach Ertz, the Eagles have plenty of offensive weapons that can catch the ball and keep a drive moving.
In some mock drafts, Matthews fell later than expected into the second round. He was a projected second-round receiver for the most part, but to some people, the Eagles have scooped up first-round talent on Day 2.
Kevin Durso is a contributor for Eagledelphia. Follow him on twitter @KDursoPhilsNet.
