Now, that was fun. A phenomenal regular season… A mostly stress-free Super Bowl. The Philadelphia Eagles, all season long, have treated us to one big ongoing celebration.
In our opinion, every Super Bowl Sunday should be treated like a holiday anyway. This time, it doubled as Saquon Barkley and Cooper DeJean’s birthday. Something tells us they’ll never forget this one.
Five days later, a parade fell on Valentine’s Day, and trust us on this one. We were feeling the love. Now, it’s time to begin the climb again.
Our next stop is the NFL Scouting Combine. Then, comes free agency and the 2025 NFL Draft. Philly has to decide what they will do with many of their impending free agents.
Josh Sweat is one of the names to watch. He could move on. Plus Myles Garrett has been mentioned as a possible trade target.
He was asked about possibly joining the nest and seemed rather interested. There’s another angle. His possible acquisition seemingly provides another argument that Philly would be willing to let Sweaty walk.
Ranking the best possible replacement options for Josh Sweat in the 2025 NFL Draft
Let’s pretend for a moment that the Birds elect moving on from Sweat as the best move for their team. They could use the coming selection meeting to find his replacement. Several edge rushers add to an already formidable defensive unit. Here are the best options we have seen.
1. Abdul Carter, outside linebacker/defensive end, Penn State Nittany Lions
Abdul Carter is the cream of the crop in this year’s 2025 NFL Draft class. He has already drawn comparisons to Micah Parsons for obvious reasons.
He has much of the same skill set. He played at the same school. He’s a baller, but Philly can seemingly only land him by trading up and exhausting a ton of resources to do so.
2. James Pearce Jr., DE/OLB, Tennessee
People typically think of offense when they think of Tennessee, but James Pearce was worth the price of admission. Philly has gone the route of adding former Vols pass rushers before (Reggie White, Derek Barnett).
As is the case with Carter, however, Pearce will seemingly have to slide to give the Birds a shot to land him.
3. Mykel Williams, DE, Georgia
Mykel Williams seemed to be on his way to a season-long domination but suffered a sprained ankle in the second half and didn’t play again until October. Barring any medical findings, he seems like a possible first-rounder after notching 21 total tackles, five sacks, and two forced fumbles for the SEC Champion Georgia Bulldogs.
4. J.T. Tuimoloau, DE, Ohio State
This guy’s a baller, and if Philly can get lucky on draft night like they did last season, he could fall to them at the end of round one (we hope). He’s definitely someone to add to the big board. He collected 61 total tackles (35 solo), 12.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, and three pass breakups on the season.
5. Jordan Burch, DE/DT, Oregon
Jordan Burch has some size to his frame. He’s six-foot-six, but here’s where it gets tricky. We’ve seen him recently listed at 268 and 295 pounds. That’s quite a difference, right?
While we sort that out, here’s the skinny. The Oregon Ducks played him both inside and outside. That led to favorable results: 31 tackles, 8.5 sacks, five pass breakups, and a forced fumble.
Also worth mentioning:
Keep an eye on Jalen Walker (Georgia), Josaiah Stewart (Michigan Wolverines), and Mike Green (Marshall Thundering Herd). All enjoyed great seasons in 2024. All are undersized, but with coaching, they could be special
