Should Eagles pursue Sam Beal in NFL supplemental draft?

Earlier this week, Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network reported that former Western Michigan cornerback Sam Beal and former Mississippi State safety Brandon Bryant are expected to apply for entry into the 2018 NFL supplemental draft.

The two defensive backs will be joining former Virginia Tech cornerback Adonis Alexander, who applied for the supplemental draft to begin the month.

The NFL supplemental draft is always a crapshoot because usually players who apply for it have off the field issues. Beal is entering into the supplemental draft because of academic shortcomings, per Yahoo Sports’ Pete Thamel.

Players, who are in the draft, rarely get picked because teams would rather not have to part ways with a draft pick the next year.

When it comes to Sam Beal, he might just be worth handing over an early round selection if you are the Philadelphia Eagles. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Beal could become the highest player selected in the supplemental draft, since the Cleveland Browns picked wide receiver Josh Gordon in 2012.

Schefter adds that the 6-foot-1 corner was projected to be one of the top cornerbacks in the 2019 NFL draft and league personnel believes Beal would be selected within the first three rounds.

When you turn on Beal’s film, you can see why he was one of the top cornerbacks to look out for in next year’s draft. He has good size for an outside cornerback and uses it to his advantage when playing in man-to-man coverage.

He also gets physical at the line of scrimmage, putting good jams on the wide receivers and does not allow himself to get beat.

Just listing those qualities alone, Beal would be a solid pickup for the Eagles’ secondary. Even though they have an abundance of young talent already, the NFL has shown consistently that you cannot have enough good cornerbacks.

The Eagles’ potential starting three cornerbacks heading into this season are Ronald Darby, Jalen Mills, and Sidney Jones. Darby is in the final year of his rookie deal, however, meaning he could be used as trade bait.

A potential trade of Darby could open the door for Jones to replace him and move Avonte Maddox in the slot, who the Eagles just drafted in the fourth round. Therefore, the Eagles backups would be Rasul Douglas and De’Vante Bausby, who is having a strong showing at OTAs.

Nevertheless, Beal is a talented cornerback and his numbers back up that claim. Last season as a junior, he racked 10 pass breakups and two interceptions and was named second team All-MAC.

The ball skills are there and the Eagles love cornerbacks with size and ball-hawking ability. It seems like a potentially good fit for both parties, ultimately giving the Eagles’ secondary more depth.

The NFL supplemental draft usually takes place in mid-July, but no date as of now has been set.