PHILADELPHIA − The Eagles made their second-round pick, taking Texas safety Andrew Mukuba at No. 64, the last pick of the second round.
It’s an interesting pick because the Eagles were prepared to give Sydney Brown, their third-round pick in 2023, the first crack at replacing C.J. Gardner-Johnson, whom the Eagles traded to Houston in March.
Mukuba is listed as a defensive back, which means he can also play the nickel.
Eagles GM Howie Roseman decided not to make a trade, addressing a position of need.
Mukuba’s lack of size (5-foot-11, 186 pounds) will show up more in the NFL than in college. But his length and speed means he can cover ground easily in the secondary. His ball production in 2024 (five interceptions, 11 passes defensed) and commitment to run defense, despite his size, will endear him to some teams.
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The Eagles were one of those teams.
Mukuba spent his first three seasons at Clemson before finishing out his career with the Longhorns. At Clemson, Mukuba was a freshman All-American and ACC Defensive of the Year. But injuries limited him the next two seasons.
At Texas, he tied for fourth in FBS with the 5 interceptions.
Mukuba is the Eagles’ second straight defensive player taken in the draft. The Eagles picked linebacker Jihaad Campbell of Alabama in the first round, at No. 31 overall on April 24.
Campbell is also considered an edge rusher. And like Roseman, Campbell refused to commit himself to a position.
“I like being a football player,” Campbell said on April 25. “I like being an absolute baller, a dude that can do everything, that can learn and grow and just maximize each and every opportunity that I have to play this game.”
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The Eagles could have gone in any number of directions.
At tight end, Mason Taylor and Terrance Ferguson went earlier in the second round. But Bowling Green’s Harold Fannin Jr., was among those still available.
It was the same at the defensive back position, where cornerbacks Trey Amos from Mississippi and Florida State‘s Azareye’h Thomas were availabe within 10 picks of the Eagles, as were safeties Kevin Winston Jr of Penn State and Oklahoma’s Billy Bowman.
At defensive tackle, Texas A&M’s Shemar Turner and Toledo’s Darius Alexander were still available within range of the Eagles.
Alexander, as it turned out, went with the very next pick, to the Giants to start the third round.
Contact Martin Frank at [email protected]. Follow on X @Mfranknfl. Read his coverage of the Eagles’ championship season in “Flying High,” a new hardcover coffee-table book from Delaware Online/The News Journal. Details at Fly.ChampsBook.com
