The Philadelphia Eagles spent the last few seasons filling their defense up with SEC stars via the draft, including former Georgia standouts Jalen Carter, Jordan Davis, Nakobe Dean and Nolan Smith.
In 2024, the Eagles snagged a Big Ten star in the draft who has proven to be one of the NFL’s best at his position in Iowa cornerback Cooper DeJean, a second round pick.
Yahoo Sports predicts Philadelphia will return to the Big Ten and grab another defensive star with Ohio State edge rusher Jack Sawyer, who Yahoo’s latest 2025 mock draft has going to the Eagles in the first round (No. 30 overall).
From Yahoo Sports: “It’s hard to find true needs for this Eagles team right now, but they could definitely stand to give Bryce Huff some competition and can do that by selecting Sawyer. The OSU star is most well-known for his interception against Michigan, but he is a steady player with a high floor who can contribute immediately.”
Sawyer, 6-foot-5 and 260 pounds, has been one of the leaders for Ohio State’s defense in its run to the College Football Playoff semifinals. In 2024, he was also an All-Big Ten selection with career highs of 53 tackles, 8.0 sacks, 1 interception, 2 forced fumbles, 2 fumble recoveries and 1 defensive touchdown … plus 1 viral moment after an upset home loss to Michigan.
Sawyer could be called upon to not only take snaps from Huff, who signed a 3-year, $51 million contract before the 2024 season, but to outright replace him after he grossly underperformed in his first year in Philly. Sawyer could also fill the void left by another edge rusher, Josh Sweat, who leads the Eagles with 8.0 sacks but is likely to leave in free agency.
Sawyer Dominant Over Last 2 Seasons at OSU
Sawyer has 22 career sacks and is a 2-time All-Big Ten selection after he also put up 48 tackles, 6.5 sacks, 10 TFL and 2 forced fumbles in 2023. The Buckeyes are 45-8 since Sawyer joined the team in 2021 and headed into Friday’s CFP semifinal against Texas in the Cotton Bowl.
From Bleacher Report’s NFL draft profile: “Jack Sawyer’s game is rooted in strength and power at the point of attack. Against the run, he’s strong, physical and takes on blocks with solid leverage to create stalemates at the line of scrimmage and set the edge against offensive tackles. That can also help him get extension and escape blocks to make plays as a run defender.”
Eagles Don’t Have Star at Edge Rusher
For all the importance put on having elite edge rushers in the NFL, the Eagles had the NFL’s best defense in 2024 without one.
In fact, the NFL’s top 2 sacks leaders, Trey Hendrickson and Myles Garrett, both played on teams that didn’t even make the postseason and Philadelphia only had 1 player — Sweat — in the Top 50 in the NFL in sacks.
Sawyer would be a great fit for the Eagles for another important reason in that he will be on a sweetheart deal of a contract for at least the first 3 seasons of his NFL career.
That’s important because Philadelphia is going to have to cough up what should be a record-setting contract for Carter after the 2025 season — a deal that could see the defensive tackle’s annual salary exceed $30 million per season and could include $100 million in guaranteed money.
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