It’s no secret that the 2020 NFL draft is an important one for the Philadelphia Eagles.

When looking at the overall framework of the team, many of their impact players are aging and the cap starts to take a drastic turn starting next year. That being said, the ability to draft well, is more important now than ever for Howie Roseman and company, who has stressed that turnover is on the horizon when it comes to his roster.

“We need to infuse youth in this team,” Roseman said in his end of a year press conference Wednesday. “We have a lot to do going forward. When we look at our team from 2017 to 2019, we knew that we had one team.”

Of course, the most glaring need on the Philadelphia Eagles right now is at the wide receiver position. With Alshon Jeffrey and DeSean Jackson on the other side of 30 and showing some decline in both production and reliability, the Eagles need to start looking towards the future. What a better way to start than this year’s draft, which is loaded at the wide receiver position.

Further evidence by Daniel Jeremiah, a former Eagles Scout and now NFL analyst who says this year’s draft is loaded with top-end WR talent.

I have 18 WRs in my top 100. — Daniel Jeremiah (@MoveTheSticks) April 17, 2020

While if the Eagles do end up going that route in the first round, the top 4 receivers on the draft board (OU’s CeeDee Lamb, Alabama’s Jerry Jeudy and Henry Ruggs, LSU’s Justin Jefferson) are sure to upgrade any unit in the NFL, especially the speed-depleted Eagles, what if the board doesn’t fall that way? Lamb, Jeudy and Ruggs are almost assuredly top 15 locks while Jefferson has been gaining momentum after an incredibly productive 2019 campaign and dominate combine, there is a good chance none of them are there at 21. So, the question begs, could they look at linebacker at 21?

To begin, since Howie Roseman has been in charge, and even before him, linebacker has never been an organizational philosophy when it comes to drafts for the Eagles. Per ProFootballReference, the Eagles have taken 10 linebackers in the last ten years with only two (Mychal Kendricks and Jordan Hicks) making any sort of impact during their time in Philadelphia. Now, that number may seem high but, it factored in edge OLB as well (Marcus Smith, yikes). If we look at pure MLB or 3 down backers, that number would drop to 4 or 5, if that. They also have not taken a linebacker since 2016, when they selected Joe Walker in the 7th round. When it comes to taking 3 down backers in the first two rounds, the Eagles have only drafted 4… in the last 20 years. So clearly, the value of a linebacker high in the draft isn’t a top priority for the Philadelphia Eagles.

Looking at it right now, the Eagles will currently roll out names like TJ Edwards, who they are extremely high on, Nate Gerry and newly signed Jatavis Brown. It seems as if the staff is confident in their core, but what if to say, they might be interested in taking a LB at 21? Jeremiah thinks there might be some weight to that.

In his latest mock draft, DJ has the Eagles taking Oklahoma’s Kenneth Murray and explains his reasoning behind that: “I’m a huge fan of Kenneth Murray, and I understand — I know — obviously I worked there, I know the history and what they traditionally do. I just know when I look inside that division and I’ve got to play Ezekiel Elliott twice a year and I’ve got to play Saquon Barkley twice a year, I’d like to have a guy like Kenneth Murray to match up against those players, and they do not have that player on their roster right now.”

Is there weight to this? Or should the Philly faithful just pass this off as another mock draft? Well depending on how the board falls and Jeremiah’s history with the team, maybe there is legitimate weight to this pick.

If they do, here are two sure-fire linebackers the Eagles should be looking at come draft time.

Kenneth Murray // Oklahoma

Out of the two mentioned in this article, I think Murray would make a ton of sense for this Eagles defense. Adding Murray to the middle of the defense would give the Eagles a sideline to sideline physical thumper they have not had in years. Looking at highlights, it seemed that whenever a tackle was made, number 9 for Oklahoma was there, I mean Murray has a tendency to be EVERYWHERE on the field.

Per ESPN, Murray finished this year with 102 total tackles and 4 sacks. Even better than that is there is consistency in production. Murray burst onto the scene in 2018 when he finished the year with 155 total tackles and 4.5 sacks, highlighted by an insane performance against Army in where he recorded 28(!) total tackles. He also plays with a tenacious style of play that would make him become an easy fan favorite for Eagles fans everywhere.

Murray is incredibly explosive and makes his decisions quickly, often ending with positive results. Not only does his play shine on the field, but Murray perhaps shines the brightest off the field. Murray would instantly give the Eagles a locker-room boost as Murray has an incredible presence, highlighted by this brilliant article about his home life and this quote from an AFC scout on his interview at the combine,

“I had an AFC coach say, ‘This was the single greatest combine interview I ever had,'” Schrager said Monday on NFL Network’s Good Morning Football. “Well, I go, ‘Why? Was he funny? Was he great’ No, he said, ‘This young man, Kenneth Murray,’ the linebacker of Oklahoma, ‘is a born leader and I want this young man to lead my team if we could even get a chance to get him.”

Murray would be a great pick for multiple reasons at 21 if Philly were to not go WR. The OU linebacker would give them a much-needed boost, both on the field and in the locker room.

Patrick Queen // Oklahoma

Like Murray in 2018, Patrick Queen of LSU did the same thing this year for the National Champions. Queen had an incredible season in the middle of that LSU defense where Queen registered 85 total tackles, 12 tackles for a loss and 3 sacks.

When putting on Queen’s tape, one thing that jumps out almost right away is his explosiveness. When Queen plays downhill, it looks like he gets shot out of a cannon. Queen is also incredible in coverage, especially zone coverage. He demonstrates excellent awareness and zone discipline as he covers the middle of the field, reading the QB’s eyes and making a play. Queen’s play recognition stood out as well, diagnosing play actions, screens, etc all over the field.

Having Patrick Queen in the middle of the Eagles defense would give them a guy who is going to consistently blank tight ends and running backs in pass coverage and give a guy who can read and diagnose plays seemingly all over the field.

It seems that many analysts are split over who is the top linebacker in this draft is. The consensus can be drawn at, who would be a better overall team fit for that said team.

Though the fact is there, whichever linebacker the Eagles go with, if they do go down that route, they are going to get a certified stud in either Kenneth Murray or Patrick Queen.