Philadelphia Eagles fans, it’s official: the 2025 NFL Draft is less than a month away.
Soon, fans will get to see which players fall from their expected draft spots, which players soar up boards due to post-season activities, and if anyone truly shocking is selected in the first round that no one saw coming, a feat Howie Roseman pulled off a decade ago with Marcus Smith.
With eight picks at their disposal, including one in each of the first four rounds, plus four more in the fifth, the Eagles will be able to move up and down the board as they see fit, with the potential to leave Green Bay with multiple plug-and-play performers, but which first round selections should fans be eager to see in midnight green this fall? Is there one player that rises above the rest, or does Roseman have options at pick 32?
Here are three potential pick 32 targets who would be incredible additions to the Eagles’ roster.
1. James Pearce Jr.
If, on the final day of the 2024 NCAA season, someone told a Volunteers fan that James Pearce Jr. might be available to the Eagles at pick 32, they would have called it crazy.
Once considered a real contender for the best edge rusher, and, in turn, the best player in the 2025 NFL Draft, Pearce didn’t quite produce up to expectations, which, when coupled with off-field concerns, has led to more than a few fans wondering what the future could hold for the speedy rusher.
On film, Pearce has some of the best highlights you will ever see, but his play is inconsistent, with the potential first-round selection having plays, drives, and even games where he doesn’t look like the sort of difference-maker worthy of a top pick.
While Pearce Jr. did help his stock at the 2025 NFL Scouting Combine, running a 4.47 40 yard dash as the crown jewel of a solid showing, his stock hasn’t rebounded in the same was as, say Shemar Stewart, who had fewer sacks over his career at Texas A&M than the Tenessee rusher had last fall in Knoxville.
While Pearce isn’t a perfect prospect, he is fast, explosive, and being heavily overlooked during the pre-draft process, which could put a chip on his shoulder moving forward. With a need for additional bodies at the outside linebacker spot and Brandon Graham heading off to retirement, James could be a major steal at pick 32 if he falls to Philadelphia.
2. Colston Loveland
Technically, the Eagles are loaded when it comes to tight ends, with Dallas Goedert, Grant Calcaterra, and EJ Jenkins all still on the roster with new additions Kylen Granson and Hunter Bryant forming over from the Indianapolis Colts and the Las Vegas Raiders, respectively.
And yet, why did the Eagles sign two tight ends in free agency? Why are they being linked to some of the top tight ends in this year’s class and to trade candidates like Michael Mayer and Kyle Pitts? Well, because it feels like Goedert’s run is winding down in Philadelphia, with fans working through the stages of grief as the 2025 NFL Draft inches forward.
While the Eagles may miss out on the top two tight ends in this year’s class and have to settle for a player like Harold Fannin Jr. – who led all players in the FBS in reciving yards last year – there is a world where Colston Loveland out of Michigan is still one the board at pick 32 and no one would be happier about that result than Roseman.
One of the best players on one of the best teams in college football over the past few years, Loveland looks the part of a top-tier tight end. He was a contributor in the run game as a moveable blocker, could catch the ball at the same level as expected TE1 Tyler Warren, and even took some snaps in the backfield, where his versatility gave opposing defensive coordinators fits before the ball was snapped.
On the Eagles, Loveland would be the best TE2 in the nation, much like Goedert’s initial pairing with Zach Ertz back in the day, or could start at the position right out of the gate if Philadelphia opts to move on from the South Dakota product. Loveland would give the team versatility and an effective piece in a running game that even asks wide receivers to pull off key blocks, and most importantly of all, would give Roseman a price-controlled starter at a position of need for the next four seasons plus the fifth-year option.
Throw that all together and what do you have? Arguably the best player who could fall to the Eagles at pick 32 if the board shakes out in a relatively predictable way.
3. Malaki Starks
And last but not least, Roseman could go back to his tried-and-true method and go out to draft a Bulldog from Georgia, with Malaki Starks the most likely of the Big-3 to fall to the team at pick 32.
Sure, there’s a world where Jalon Walker or Mykel Williams could fall to Philadelphia, as neither player is necessarily a guarantee to go top-10, but they both present enough upside to be taken at worst by a wildcard playoff team, which can’t necessarily be said for Starks.
Playing one of the less desirable positions in the NFL, with starting safeties not making that much more than a later first-round pick’s fifth-year option on an AAV, Starks was thoroughly leapfrogged at the combine by Nick Emmanwori, who ran the Georgia product’s pedestrian numbers out of the building at the NFL Scouting Combine.
Still, after saying goodbye to CJ Gardner-Johnson mere weeks after winning the Super Bowl, bringing in Starks could effectively replace him with a similar-caliber player right from the jump, with his entire rookie contract worth less than the balloon payment Roseman wanted off the books in 2025. Starks is a smart, cerebrial safety who can play on either the strong or weakside, can moonlight in the box, and is even capable of playing slot cornerback, which could be more of an issue in 2025, what with Cooper DeJean likely moving outside more often to accomidate for the exits of Darius Slay and Isaiah Rodgers.
If Starks is on the board at pick 32, the Eagles should be happy to add one of the best prospects in the 2025 NFL Draft to their roster and know that he will be a quality, long-term starter on a team-friendly deal for the foreseeable future.
The post Philadelphia Eagles 3 best players to target with 2025 NFL Draft first-round pick appeared first on ClutchPoints.
