Eagles Fans Elated After Jeremiah Trotter Jr. Legacy Draft Pick, Praise Howie Roseman
Timothy Rapp@@TRappaRT
Featured Columnist IVApril 27, 2024
Jeremiah Trotter played linebacker for the Philadelphia Eagles for eight seasons during his NFL career. Now, his son is following in his footsteps.
The Birds selected linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr. in the fifth round (No. 155 overall) at Saturday's NFL draft, and Eagles fans and pundits alike were excited to see the team keeping it in the family:
Coming into the 2024 offseason, linebacker was one of Philly's biggest needs outside of rebuilding the secondary. The team responded by signing Devin White, Zack Baun and Oren Burks while drafting Trotter.
The rookie fifth-rounder will provide both depth and competition at the position. Nakobe Dean and White are the expected starters in the middle, though Dean has struggled with injuries during his young career and White's inconsistent play last season led to a divorce with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
As for Baun and Burks, the former is more likely to have a role on the edge than in the middle given his struggles converting to a coverage linebacker role with the New Orleans Saints. Burks, meanwhile, has largely been a backup to this point in his career and should contribute primarily on special teams.
So there's a real opportunity for Trotter to play his way into some playing time in 2024.
According to the B/R NFL Scouting Department, Trotter has "a lot of skills that will help him impact the passing game in the NFL," though the "biggest issue with Trotter's game is that he could use some work against the run."
That means he may have more of a role on passing downs earlier in his career, though he has the talent to potential grow into a more complete player. It was certainly a surprise to see him drop into the fifth round—the B/R NFL Scouting Department had him graded as a third-round prospect.
Yet another value pick for general manager Howie Roseman, in other words.
