Apparently, just about everybody needed an offensive tackle. Of the first 29 picks, eight have been offensive tackles. Jake Long got the party started as the No. 1 overall selection. Then, 11 picks later, Ryan Clady from Boise State went to Denver. The Eagles had a chance to get Jeff Otah from Pittsburgh, but traded the pick to Carolina. 

Sometimes once a type of player gets hot -- in this case, offensive tackles -- these things happen. 

 The Carolina Panthers must have wanted Jeff Otah BAD. In exchange for the Eagles' No. 19 pick, the Panthers gave up their first-round pick next year, which has the possibility of being a top 10 pick. The Panthers also handed over their second-round (No. 43) and fourth-round (No. 109) picks this year. Carolina picked Oregon running back Jonathan Stewart at 13.

Or, you could say that the Eagles are stockpiling ammunition to get Chad Johnson. I know that the Bengals have bent over backwards saying they're going to keep their disgruntled wide receiver, but I don't believe them. They've got to get some value for Johnson. Johnson has said he'll sit out the season before he plays for the Bengals again, and Johnson's agent, Drew Rosenhaus, was on ESPN two hours before the draft saying that his "sources" told him the Bengals have turned down multiple first-round picks for Johnson. Maybe they have. Maybe the picks weren't high enough to get the Bengals interest. Maybe the Eagles now have the means to get Johnson. Or maybe not.

The Eagles need a wide receiver. That we all know for sure.

So we thought there would be a trade, but a trade down? The Eagles traded their first-round pick to Carolina, and the Panthers selected Jeff Otah, the tackle from Pittsburgh that many prognosticators had going to Philadelphia. Not so. Interesting development.

No promises, but it looks like the wireless problem here at Radio City Music Hall has been fixed. And they're playing the Rocky theme in the hall while the time ticks off the clock to see who the Eagles are going to pick. Once Baltimore selected, the Eagles fans here started singing "Fly, Eagles, Fly." They were booed. Go figure.

I'm here at Radio City Music Hall, but the wireless situation is a mess. I'm typing this on the computer of a colleague with a wireless card. One of those is in my future. Until then, hopefully the NFL can get their glitch fixed. I'll file again once they do...

11:50 a.m.

The mass has just ended, with the familiar proclamation: "The mass is ended; go in peace." Preceded by several dozen bishops and cardinals, Benedict is processing now through the infield of Nationals' Park, pausing to shake a few hands, and about to exit.

For security reasons the crowd has to wait until he has left the stadium.

This evening he speaks to Catholic educators and meets with interfaith religious leaders.

11:45

The distribution of communion at the papal mass appears to be over. Placido Domingo has just begun singing "Panis Angelicus." Benedict - a connoisseur of traditional music - appears to be watching him intently.

The pope clearly enjoyed the singing: He stood up when it was over and walked over to Domingo and clasped his hands. Domingo knelt and kissed his hand.

Pope Benedict XVI greets the crowd. (LAURENCE KESTERSON / Inquirer Photographer)

11:10 a.m.

Although I was standing in Saint Peter's Square on April 19, 2005 when the prelate, known previously as Cardinal Josef Ratzinger, stepped onto balcony and was introduced for the first time as Pope Benedict XVI and have also seen him several times in Rome since then, his trip to the United States has offered me my first close look at the man.

What strikes me first is his physical energy. At age 81 (his birthday was yesterday) he walks quickly and reads long texts in a strong voice, never seeming to tire. For those of us who watched Pope John Paul's long, slow decline due to Parkinson's disease - slurring his words towards the end of his life, and unable to sit up in a chair - Benedict seems remarkably youthful: physically and mentally equipped  to steer the world's largest church for another decade. 

I'm also struck by how much he seems to be enjoying himself. He smiles often, sometimes breaking into what can only be called grins, as if surprised and delighted by the applause and whistles. His gestures are not nearly as dramatic as those of his friend and predecessor, Pope John Paul II, but he comes across as a grandfatherly figure who cares for, and about, his flock. The American public, and especially Catholics, may start to warm up to this man they did not heretofore seem to know.   

He has just begun the consecration, the most solemn portion of the Mass.