Eagles lend an ear to Senior Bowl buzz

MOBILE, Ala. - The Eagles are deficient at linebacker and so, the thinking goes, they must select one in the first round of April's draft.

But they are young there, and adding another novice to the starting lineup may not be the best course of action, not to mention it's something the Eagles never do.

But the Eagles are aging on their defensive line, their younger cycle of linemen come with many a question mark, and the Eagles really like to draft at that position.

And if at first you don't succeed, try, try, try . . . again.

While this year's class of defensive linemen isn't expected to be as deep early in the draft as last year - 11 were chosen in the first round - there are still a number of quality prospects.

Many of them, though, aren't at the Senior Bowl because defensive ends Nick Perry of Southern Cal and Whitney Mercilus of Illinois and defensive tackles Michael Brockers of LSU and Jerel Worthy of Michigan State are juniors.

And when Penn State senior Devon Still backed out because of an injury, the annual all-star game lost the draft's top-rated defensive tackle, at least according to many scouts.

But there were still a bunch of talented defensive linemen on display here during the first three days of practice, including a few who saw their stock go up.

"The South defensive line, I think, is the best position group here," the NFL Network's Mike Mayock said. "There are three or four first- round picks in that group."

Most see North Carolina's Quinton Coples as the best defensive end in the draft. He has the type of size (6-foot-6, 281 pounds) and speed (4.7 seconds in the 40) teams drool over. And he can seemingly play anywhere.

Last season, he mostly lined up at defensive tackle and recorded 59 tackles, 151/2 tackles for loss and 10 sacks. But he also played outside in the Tar Heels' hybrid 3-4/4-3 defense.

"I'm versatile," Coples said Wednesday. "I played zero to the nine-[technique], and I can drop into coverage as well."

Many equate Coples to the Bears' Pro Bowl end Julius Peppers. While that isn't necessarily fair to the 21-year-old, they do come from the same school and are of similar size.

Coples said he met with the Eagles, among many other teams, just for a background check. He may not be available when the Eagles pick at No. 15, though.

Clemson's Andre Branch (6-5, 260 pounds) should be. Branch, like Alabama's Courtney Upshaw (6-2, 265), who is also here, could project as an outside linebacker in a 3-4 scheme. But many believed Brandon Graham was better suited to play linebacker than end, and that didn't stop the Eagles from drafting him No. 1 two years ago.

Graham and his recovery from knee surgery will obviously play an important part in whether the Eagles go back once again to the well at defensive end. Jason Babin (18 sacks) and Trent Cole (11 sacks) will be back next season. But neither - Babin is 31, Cole, 29 - is getting younger.

Juqua Parker, 33, won't likely be back. Darryl Tapp (27) and Phillip Hunt (26) are no more than extra pieces. The Eagles may need to start preparing for the future, especially with Graham an unknown and the extra year it typically takes for ends to develop.

The Eagles may get more value in the second round, and they do have two picks. Marshall's Vinny Curry made some waves on Wednesday. A Neptune, N.J., native, he grew up an Eagles fan. He doesn't look like his listed 6-3, 265 pounds, but he's a straight up 4-3 edge pass rusher.

"I like Vinny Curry," Mayock said. "He plays with a great motor, great leverage. He gets up the field. He's quick. I think he's probably a second-round pick."

While the Eagles don't have as much at stake with Antonio Dixon as they do with Graham, his recovery from a torn triceps could influence how they address defensive tackle.

Once again, their starters - Cullen Jenkins and Mike Patterson - are expected to return. But Jenkins is 31 and will cost the Eagles $7.7 million against the salary cap next season, and Patterson is 28 and will undergo surgery to correct an arteriovenous malformation.

Backups Derek Landri (28) and Trevor Laws (26) are slated to become unrestricted free agents. The Eagles should attempt to sign Landri, and they actually approached Laws last season, according to NFL sources, about an extension.

That may come as a surprise considering that Laws is considered one of the defensive linemen the Eagles drafted high and didn't get equal value for what they paid. Defensive ends Jerome McDougle and Victor Abiamiri and defensive tackle Brodrick Bunkley are some of the others cited.

Still could be out of reach for the Eagles unless they paired one of their second-round picks with their first and moved up. Brockers could be there at 15. Brandon Thompson of Clemson was consistently the best defensive tackle here this week.

"Some people like him late in the first round," Mayock said. "I don't think he'll get out of the second round."

The 6-2, 311-pound Thompson would appear to fit in well with Eagles defensive line coach Jim Washburn's attack-style scheme for tackles.

"We attack and read our man," Thompson said. "We don't sit on the line and read."