Georgia wide receiver among 3 new Eagles pre-draft visits

Nearly half of Philadelphia’s top 30 visits have been revealed thus far.

Time to add three new prospects to our Eagles official pre-draft visits tracker. With 17 days until the 2022 NFL Draft, we now know 14 of the team’s 30 allowed visits.

The latest names include:

• Georgia wide receiver George Pickens (indicated via Instagram and separately confirmed by sources to Bleeding Green Nation)
• Penn State edge rusher Arnold Ebiketie (per Josh Norris)
• Western Kentucky edge rusher DeAngelo Malone (per Tom Pelissero)

Let’s sort through this news on a player-by-player basis.

GEORGE PICKENS

Pickens, who turned 21 last month, is one of the taller wide receiver prospects in this year’s draft. He officially measured in at just over 6’3”.

While his size offers intrigue, his production raises questions. His volume numbers only went down each year after a good start as a true freshman in 2019 (via Sports Reference):

Pickens missed some playing time at Georgia due to violating team rules and then again for fighting with a Georgia Tech player. Pickens also missed games in 2021 while recovering from an ACL injury. To his credit, Pickens was able to get back on the field and help the Bulldogs win a national championship this past season.

Pickens is exactly the kind of player that makes sense for a pre-draft visit. The Eagles are likely intrigued by his upside but they want to do some more homework on him to better gauge their level of comfort with drafting him.

If the Eagles miss out on getting a first-round receiver, Pickens could entice them on Day 2. Philly could certainly afford to add more size to their receiving corps.

Scouting report via NFL.com:

Lanky perimeter wideout with exciting ball skills but in desperate need of additional play strength and a clean bill of health. Resilient to make it back so quickly after an ACL tear, but needs to show quick-cutting ability for route-running. Pickens possesses borderline elite ball skills with in-air adjustments, strong hands and an enormous catch radius. However, he fails to put defenders on his hip and command the catch space to make his work less cluttered. The routes need more polish and physicality but he has the athletic ability to become a viable target on all three levels as a likely Day 2 draft pick with a little wider gap between ceiling and floor than NFL teams might like.

NFL Comparison: Josh Reynolds

Spider graph via Mockdraftable:

Highlights:

ARNOLD EBIKETIE

Ebiketie is the second Penn State defender the Eagles are hosting; they were previously linked to Jesse Luketa.

Ebiketie, a Cameroon native, actually began his collegiate career nearby at Temple before transferring. The move resulted in him posting his strongest numbers with 18 tackles for loss, 9.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, and two blocked kicks in 2021.

The Eagles have shown interest in undersized edge rushers who can perhaps also contribute in a SAM linebacker role. On that note, Ebiketie has been described as a fit for a 3-4 defense.

Ebiketie projects as a Day 2 selection and could develop into a starter.

Scouting report via NFL.com:

Purposeful rusher with good length. Ebiketie is quiet to the edge with accurate, active hands and a pressure percentage worthy of projection. He’s not bendy and loose but uses body lean and skilled hands to grease the edge and access the pocket. He will need to keep adding to his bag of tricks as a pocket hunter, as he lacks the base and body type to hold his ground and plug up run games on a consistent basis. Ebiketie could see action as a sub-package pass rusher early in his career. He has the potential to find starting reps as a 3-4 rush linebacker in the future.

NFL Comparison: Uchenna Nwosu

Spider graph via Mockdraftable:

Highlights:

DEANGELO MALONE

Malone, 23, played at Western Kentucky for five spans. He racked up some big numbers during that span: 349 total tackles (59 for loss), 32.5 sacks, eight forced fumbles, seven pass deflections, two blocked kicks, and one interception.

Weighing in at 243 pounds, Malone is yet another undersized edge rusher that the Eagles seem to be interested in. You know, as opposed to a bulkier, traditional 4-3 defensive end. Given the Haason Reddick signing and the interest in these kind of rushers, Jonathan Gannon seems to be interested in utilizing more 3-4 looks.

Malone projects as a late Day 2 pick. He could feasibly be in play for the Eagles if they don’t add an edge rusher earlier on.

Scouting report via NFL.com:

Super senior who decided to come back for another season to put more on film for general managers to think about. Malone’s wiry build belies his toughness and play strength at the point of attack. He uses quick feet, a flexible frame and unusually successful recovery balance to slink into playmaking positions in the run game. His rush is unorthodox and unpredictable but his burst to close and fluidity inside the pocket are valuable in finishing against mobile quarterbacks. His slender frame will get knocked and he needs to craft a more repeatable rush, but he is competitive and savvy. Malone could challenge for a future starting job as a 3-4 outside linebacker and offers immediate special-teams value.

Spider graph via Mockdraftable:

Highlights:

Complete list of known Philadelphia Eagles draft visits

Georgia WR George Pickens

Western Kentucky DE DeAngelo Malone

Penn State DE Arnold Ebiketie

Clemson CB Andrew Booth Jr.

Texas A&M OL Kenyon Green

Penn State DE Jesse Luketa

Ole Miss QB Matt Corral

Tulsa OL Tyler Smith

Oklahoma DT Perrion Winfrey

Oregon DE Kayvon Thibodeaux

Houston CB Marcus Jones

Cincinnati CB Ahmad ‘Sauce” Gardner

Georgia DT Jordan Davis

Georgia DT Devonte Wyatt