Eagles Select 31-Touchdown Running Back to Pair With Saquon Barkley

“Shipley mostly wins as a runner with his decisiveness and burst,” The Bleacher Report Scouting Department writes. “Shipley isn’t one to bounce many runs. He waits for the right gap to open up as designed and pounces on it with an immediate burst. Shipley generates a ton of explosiveness in his first few steps and can cover a lot of ground quickly, lending himself to efficient gains.

“On passing downs, Shipley is a mixed bag. He handles himself well as a receiver, showing adequate route-running ability and soft hands. He’s best as a simple checkdown and underneath option, though he flashed some ability to win down the field on wheel and seam routes. However, Shipley needs more experience and strength in pass protection.”

Shipley is Eagles’ First Pick on Offense in 2024 NFL Draft

The Eagles spent the first two nights of the NFL Draft adding significant talent to the defense, taking Quinyon Mitchell in the first round before trading up Friday evening to select fellow cornerback Cooper DeJean.

Then, Jalyx Hunt was Philadelphia’s pick with the No. 94 overall selection, in Round 3 on Friday night.

However, according to Eagles general manager Howie Roseman, the plan wasn’t to make an effort to load up on defense it just so happens that’s how the board fell the first two days of the draft.

“I don’t think that we did,” Roseman told reporters when asked if the plan was to prioritize the defense. “You know, we went into this draft feeling like we had an opportunity to kind of stick to our board. I think that during the first round it seemed pretty obvious to us that it was going to pay off being patient.

“I think we woke up today and felt like it would pay off being a little bit aggressive. Then when we came into the third round, saw where the board was, and took some phone calls. Felt like it was our advantage to move down and try to accumulate picks for tomorrow. So, I think you can go in with a plan, but because you’re subject to so many other teams and what they’re going to do, you have to be able to adjust and see what’s going on and be able to do that kind of on your feet.”

Whether DeJean and Mitchell start immediately as rookies remains to be seen, but they are undoubtedly the Eagles’ future at cornerback and could be reliable reinforcements if veterans James Bradberry and Darius Slay falter in 2024 as they did down the stretch in 2023.