Mike Mayock, Brian Billick, Steve Mariucci say Eagles should go offense in first round

Sitting at No. 14 in Thursday’s first round, the Eagles have a ton of variables to consider.

But according to NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock, unless a top defender surprisngly falls in their lap, Philly should add a player on offense.

“I’ve been saying all along that I think the Eagles ought to be looking real hard at the offensive side because they drafted Carson Wentz and you have to support him,” Mayock said prior to the Philly-hosted draft’s kickoff Wednesday. “If you look their roster, the two free agent wideouts [Torrey Smith, Alshon Jeffery] are both effectively on one-year deals, Darren Sproles probably retires next year and their slot receiver [Jordan Matthews] is on his contract year. All of their skill guys are effectively on one-year deals. I look at the Eagles as if it’s the best defensive player on the board, like Reuben Foster, versus who is the best playmaker: Is it a running back, is it a wide receiver, is it a tight end? I want an offensive playmaker because last year I went from 13 to 8 to two, and you have to support him.”

Among the players expected to fall in the Eagles’ window are Corey Davis, Christian McCaffery, Dalvin Cook, John Ross and Mike Williams. Any of those names called at the Art Museum on Thursday night would satisfy their mission to give Wentz a plethroa of weapons — and would give him one to work with with a long-term view in mind.

“You look at the best player available on the board at the time,” former NFL head coach Steve Mariucci urged. “If it happens to be a playmaker on offense that would help surround Carson Wentz with weapons. If it’s a good defensive player on the board, that fits a need as well. You get those kinds of choices when you pick in the middle of the draft.”

“I think they are in a good position to take the best player available,” he continued. “You might be able to get a corner in the second round. There are a lot of good corners in the draft. There will be some good receivers and running backs when they pick that will be tempting.”

Should the Eagles give into temptation?

Brian Billick, another former NFL head coach, says they should if the answer to the following question is “yes.”

“Are we doing everything we can to do optimize the future of Carson Wentz?”

Will the Eagles ask the same questions Thursday? Tune in to find out.