Reid enjoys another cold draft

The Eagles just can’t help themselves. Even in the chaos of the NFL draft, the one quality that shines through is their arrogance. In case you missed it, the Eagles had another amazing draft this past weekend.

The Eagles brought in a terrific pass rusher, a fantastic safety, an unbelievable defensive lineman, blah, blah, blah. I’m not here to tell you any of this is true or not. I wouldn’t be able to identify any of these guys if they were sitting in my living room.

What I can say is that the Eagles never fail to act like the smartest kid in the class, even though they never get to be valedictorian. After 50 years of failing to win a title, the Birds still think they’re the Yankees.

For example, they maneuvered their way from No. 24 to 13 by trading two third-round picks to Denver, positioning themselves perfectly for safety Earl Thomas. The ESPN experts, moments before the announcement, even proclaimed that Thomas would be the Eagles’ pick. It made so much sense. They still desperately need to replace Brian Dawkins, whose absence was the result of some equally arrogant thinking.

And then the Eagles did what they always do. They reached beyond the laws of logic and picked Brandon Graham. That Graham wasn’t even the top defensive end available (Derrick Morgan was No. 1) meant nothing to Andy Reid and his Mensa brigade. Hey, maybe they know more than everybody else.

Yeah, sure they do. The way they did in 2003, when they traded from No. 30 to 15 and claimed Jerome McDougle? Same position, almost identical trade scenario, and we should expect a different result? Why?

The Eagles are terrible at evaluating defensive ends. Just two years ago, they wasted a third-round pick on an undersized pass-rusher named Bryan Smith from that football factory, McNeese State. Before that, they called Victor Abiamiri the next Hugh Douglas. He has had four sacks in four seasons. The best defensive end they have drafted under Reid was an afterthought; Trent Cole came here in the fifth round.

The point is simple. The Eagles stink at the draft. They really wouldn’t do much worse with a dartboard. Yet, they continue to reach for players, to wheel and deal as if they know more than anybody else. By now, a logical organization would have brought in a top-rated player evaluator. Instead, Reid hired totally unproven Howie Roseman as his new GM and then spent the entire draft laughing in the face of conventional wisdom.

There’s only one word for that kind of behavior. Arrogant.

– Angelo Cataldi is host of 610 WIP’s Morning Show, which airs weekdays from 5:30-10 a.m.

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