Heckert: Reid ready for draft

ANDY REID RUNS the Eagles' draft table, of course. There's been no question about that since Tom Modrak was deposed following the 2001 draft, and Reid assumed full control of personnel decisions.

Something will be a little different this weekend, though, when the Birds gather at the NovaCare Complex for the 2007 talent bazaar. Reid was away from the office from Feb. 12 to March 23, dealing with the aftermath of the arrests of two of his sons, Garrett and Britt. For the first time since he became the Birds' coach, 8 years back, Reid did not attend the NFL scouting combine in late February. In his two public appearances since returning from his leave of absence, Reid has spoken of needing to catch up on draft preparation.

Reid declined to be interviewed for this story, through an Eagles spokesman. But general manager Tom Heckert said he feels Reid is as prepared as ever for the draft, and Heckert said he doesn't anticipate even the tiniest difference in the way the "war room" functions this coming weekend.

"He was doing stuff when he wasn't here," Heckert said recently. "It wasn't like he wasn't doing anything - he was watching tape when he was gone . . . I sent tape [to Reid] and once he got back, we started really watching the guys we think we have interest in. He's been concentrating on those guys for the last couple weeks."

The main thing Reid missed, Heckert said, was the chance to sit face to face with prospects at the combine for the 15-minute interviews each team conducts. Reid saw tapes of the interviews, but of course did not participate.

"We interviewed 60 guys at the combine, and we've had 30 guys in here" for interviews over the past several weeks, Heckert said. "A lot of those were the same guys, so he has talked to a lot of those guys. The other guys, he's watched the interviews and [Heckert and the rest of the staff] have met 'em and talked to 'em. That's not a big issue. Guys we thought he needed to talk to, he has talked to."

Reid met with all the veteran free agents the Eagles brought in during his leave, as he would have done normally.

Heckert's stature and title have changed since he was hired in 2001, from personnel chief to general manager, but Heckert said the team's draft dynamic has remained the same.

"It's really kind of a collective deal. We talk about a lot of different stuff, every possible scenario, if we trade down, if we trade up - everybody's involved, and at the end of the day, obviously, Andy's going to make the decision," Heckert said.

Of course, only Reid can answer the question of whether he will give more weight to others' opinions this year, before pulling the trigger on a pick. Not that a little more deference would necessarily be a bad thing. In 2001, Reid famously met with UCLA wideout Freddie Mitchell in California, and returned for the draft convinced Mitchell was a great fit for the Birds. They selected him in the first round, 25th overall. Mitchell, drafted ahead of Reggie Wayne, among others, caught 90 passes in four seasons. He hasn't played in the NFL since the Eagles released him following the 2004 season.

And even though it's not completely clear that Reid was the catalyst, team sources have said running back Ryan Moats was barely on the staff's radar before the Birds abruptly selected him in the third round in 2005. At the time, management was worried about being able to get a deal done with Brian Westbrook before he became eligible for free agency. The Eagles eventually signed Westbrook long-term. Moats, who seems to be a poor fit for the West Coast offense, has been unable to get on the field much in two seasons and could be cut this year if the team drafts a running back.

Reid's absence didn't hinder the Eagles' compiling of their draft board, Heckert said. That's the ranking of each available player, and it occurs, at least in rough draft form, long before draft week.

"It's been set, probably for about a month . . . now we have to tweak it," he said. "The guys that are really close, if there are four guys in a certain area, we'll really study those four guys and come up with the 1-2-3-4 out of those guys. [By now] it's not going to change hardly at all." *