Eagles draft Southern Methodist tight end in sixth round originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Eagles, who started Saturday with just two picks — No. 154 in the fifth round and No. 237 in the seventh round — traded No. 154 to Doug Pederson’s Jaguars for two sixth-round picks in this draft. year.

The Eagles got the numbers 188 and 198 in the sixth round, meaning they won’t have a fourth or fifth round pick, but they will have two in the sixth round and one in the seventh.

The Jaguars selected Ole Miss running back Snoop Conner with the pick they got from the Eagles.

After their trade to the Saints, the Eagles had 10 picks in the draft, but after the AJ Brown trade they were down to five, and Howie Roseman indicated Friday night that he would like to add volume to the Eagles draft. .

The Eagles took Jordan Davis at No. 13, Cam Jurgens at No. 51 and Nakobe Dean at No. 83, then there will be 105 picks before picking again.

With their fifth and final pick in this year’s draft, the Eagles drafted South Methodist tight end Grant Calcaterra in the sixth round with the 198th overall pick.

Calcaterra, a transfer from Oklahoma, is 6-foot-4, 245 pounds, caught 41 passes for 637 yards and nine touchdowns from 2017-19 at Norman before retiring from football due to multiple concussions.

He returned to college football last fall and was 38 for 465 with four touchdowns playing for SMU.

“I believe I’m still one of the best guys in my position playing college football,” Calcaterra told KDFW in Dallas. “I want to play in the NFL and I want to be the best at my job.”

Calcaterra retired before the 2020 season and did not play that year after suffering a concussion in practice while at Oklahoma. He said he had suffered several concussions and did not know how many.

“I’ve spent countless hours visiting medical professionals and OU specialists across the country,” he said in a video on Twitter. “In the end, we came to the conclusion that it was better for me to step away from the game.”

After retiring, he decided to pursue a career as a firefighter – no jokes with Fireman Danny, please – but he missed the game and decided to give football another shot at SMU.

When cleared by doctors, he played this past season for the Mustangs and caught 38 passes for 465 yards and four touchdowns.

“I just have an extreme passion for the game and I know that just like a knee injury, it’s going to have an effect on me later on,” Calcaterra said.

“I love playing football and I will do my best and deal with what happens later.”

The Eagles rarely write tight ends. Zach Ertz and Dallas Goedert, 2nd round picks in 2013 and 2018, were the only tight ends they drafted between 2011 and 2021. Three of the last five tight ends they picked – Brent Celek in 2007, Ertz and Goedert – have become staples on the Eagles Offense.

With Ertz now in Arizona, the Eagles are truly unstable behind Goedert, and Calcaterra will have every chance of making the team as TE2. The only other tight ends on the roster are long-range draft Tyree Jackson, blocking specialist Jack Stoll and converted wide receiver JJ Arcega-Whiteside.

Calcaterra is the first SMU player the Eagles have drafted since Pro Bowl safety Wes Hopkins, their 2nd round pick in 1983.

After a flurry of trades, the Eagles were left with just five picks in this year’s draft – No. 13 overall [Georgia DT Jordan Davis]No. 51 in the second round [Nebraska C Cam Jurgens]No. 83 in the third round [Georgia LB Nakobe Dean]No. 181 in the sixth round [Kansas LB Kyron Johnson] and No. 198 in the sixth round [Calcaterra].

So after starting the draft with 10 picks, they were left with no picks in the fourth, fifth, or seventh rounds.

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