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Eagles to tackle defensive needs in NFL draft

Birds' looking for help at several positions, including cornerback, safety and linebacker.

REALLY, THERE isn't a defensive position you can say the Eagles definitely won't address in the NFL draft, which starts Thursday and concludes Saturday.

There was a brief instant a few weeks back, after the trade for Tim Jernigan, in which an observer might have thought, "well, a defensive tackle in the draft is unlikely now," but very soon the news broke that Beau Allen had suffered a pec tear. Allen is hoping to get back for the season opener, which might be an optimistic projection.

So, everything's on the table. Here is a rundown of what the Eagles have at each position and what they need.

Cornerback: You might have heard that the Eagles need corners, having bid farewell to 2016 starters Nolan Carroll and Leodis McKelvin, and having not addressed the need with a big-money free-agent signing. Most years, you might look at that circumstance and say, "Hey, they're gonna draft a corner in the first round," but this is not most years.

Supposedly, this is the deepest corner draft in forever. So even though we think the Eagles need to get an immediate starter, they conceivably can find that in the second or third round, and if they add another guy in the fourth or fifth, they might turn out to have done very well for themselves.

Or not. Howie Roseman and Joe Douglas were telling us last week how last year, it was said to be a deep draft for defensive tackles. Roseman said he went in thinking he might find one in the fourth round. Instead, Roseman said, every draft-rated DT on the Eagles' board was gone by the end of the second round.

The longer you wait, the more you tempt fate. The Eagles have studied this draft class diligently. It's unlikely that they're thinking, "Ah, after Marshon Lattimore, there's really no difference in the next seven or eight guys." Jim Schwartz, as Malcolm Jenkins reminded us this week, requires his corners to excel at man-press coverage, and to also hold their own downfield. There is something to be said for taking the guy you want at 14, whether you think that might be a bit high for him or not, instead of waiting to see whether he's there at 43 in the second round on Friday, and then having to shrug your shoulders and say, "OK, we'll take this other guy instead, no worries."

This is where we need to talk about the shocking Gareon Conley sexual assault allegation that emerged Tuesday. Conley is an Ohio State corner the Eagles are said to like; Jenkins, an Ohio State alum, said Monday he hoped Conley would be the Eagles' first-round choice, though at that point, many mock drafts had Conley going before the 14th pick.

Now, unless there is some sort of miraculous recantation/exoneration, Conley certainly will be available at 14, but it seems unlikely the Birds will take him there. Nobody really knows what will happen. We do know that two years ago, offensive tackle La'el Collins from LSU went undrafted when a former girlfriend was shot just before the draft, and Collins was questioned. After the draft, he was cleared, he signed with the Cowboys, and Collins quickly became the starting-quality player he'd been projected to be.

Conley might or might not be undraftable now. Assuming the other Ohio State corner, Lattimore, goes in the top 10 as expected, is there a viable corner for the Eagles at 14? I would argue that there is, that if you think Kevin King or Tre'Davious White or Marlon Humphrey or Adoree' Jackson is a surefire quality starter, you take one of them, and if you get tsk-tsked by Mel Kiper Jr., that's life in the big city.

But if you really have somebody who's available at another position rated much higher, sure, you ought to be able to find a corner at 43. I might be willing to invest there in Sidney Jones, the guy from Washington, originally mocked as a top-10 pick, who tore his Achilles' working out. This isn't 20 years ago, a guy that young with proper rehab is going to be fine in the long run, and the Eagles supposedly are all about the long run right now, building a contender around Carson Wentz. By the time Wentz is ready to win a Super Bowl, Jones will be, as well.

Safety: The Eagles have two good starters in Rodney McLeod and Malcolm Jenkins, but this is an excellent safety draft, as well. It would be quite interesting should either Jamal Adams or Malik Hooker,the safeties widely projected in the top 10, somehow still be available at 14. If that happens, I think you take the safety, and sort out who plays where later. Jenkins, who called Hooker the most talented of the three top-echelon Ohio State defensive backs, can be a nickel corner.

Linebacker: I don't get the sense the Eagles are really into Reuben Foster, the only real possibility at 14th overall. Jordan Hicks and Nigel Bradham are going to be the Eagles' three-down starters. They haven't drafted a linebacker in the first round since Jerry Robinson in 1979. But they do lack depth here, especially if Mychal Kendricks eventually departs. Duke Riley from LSU might be a middle-to-late-round fit.

Defensive end: This is the spot where the Birds seem most likely to surprise us. They have Brandon Graham, Vinny Curry, Chris Long, Marcus Smith and Alex McCalister. But Jim Schwartz is all about that pass rush. If Tennessee's Derek Barnett is available at 14, he might very well become an Eagle. Otherwise, the need might wait, say, for Villanova's Tanoh Kpassagnon, at 99 in the third round?

Defensive tackle: Beau Allen is likely to be OK for most of the season, so this isn't a dire need, but I'd expect the Eagles to pick up a DT at some point, among their eight selections. Davon Godchaux from LSU? Carlos Watkins from Clemson?

bowenl@phillynews.com

@LesBowen

Blog: philly.com/Eaglesblog