What is the Philadelphia Eagles' biggest need heading into the 2025 NFL Draft?
Is it safety, where they don't have a starter lined up after the CJ Gardner-Johnson trade? Is it tight end, which could become dire if they end up trading away Dallas Goedert? Or is the Eagles' biggest need more about their future, with the need to future-proof positions of need for when players inevitably leave for one reason or another a higher priority?
Could the answer be both? Is there a world where the Eagles could draft a player at 32 who could contribute now and take on an even bigger role in the future, assuming they play up to that level?
Why yes, yes, there are. The Eagles could select a defensive back who begins his career in defensive sub-packages like Cooper DeJean last year. Or draft a future right tackle who can moonlight as a guard until Lane Johnson retires. Or even pick a pass rusher, interior or edge, who can log 400-500 snaps this fall before becoming a full-time starter at a position of need moving forward due to merit or need.
But what about wide receiver? Yes, the Eagles have two pass catchers on nine-figure deals, but they won't be on the team forever, with AJ Brown rumors growing more and more common over the past two years. Considering how little the Eagles got out of Jahan Dotson and Johnny Wilson in 2024, maybe the team could bring in a premier WR3 this spring who they have control over for the next five years and can take on a bigger role with each subsequent season if his play warrants it.
If that option is on the table, then drafting Luther Burden III would be a fantastic use of a late first-round pick for now and the future.
Luther Burden III can stretch the field for the Eagles in 2025
If Burden III arrives in Philadelphia later this spring for OTAs, he will unquestionably be the Eagles' WR3. He would fall firmly behind Brown, DeVonta Smith, and Goedert – assuming he's still on the team – in the offensive pecking order and would likely have to settle for a supplemental role in Nick Sirianni's offense, as opposed to a focal point.
With that being said, Burden III does a lot of things that normal WR3s can't, and as a result, he has the potential to transform the Eagles' offense into something far more lethal than even their 2024 high points.
First and foremost, Burden III is fast. He ran a 4.41 at the combine and likely would have shaven a few tenths of a second off that time had he run at Missouri's Pro Day. At Missouri, Burden III was a threat down the field both from the slot and on the outside, and his ability to read the ball in the air and compensate for his quarterback's arm – which wasn't particularly strong – allowed him to turn trash into treasure on more than a few occasions. Place Burden III in the Quez Watkins role from 2023, and the Eagles would be able to spread out the field even further and force opposing teams to respect Jalen Hurts' arm deep while opening up running lanes for Saquon Barkley in the box.
Luther Burden III can unlock a new element of the offense
If Burden was just going to serve as a Watkins-esque deep threat for the Eagles in 2025, he likely wouldn't be worth a first-round pick. Fortunately, Burden III can do a whole lot more than that and projects as a legitimate weapon in an offense that became a bit too one-dimensional in 2024.
Standing 6-foot, 206 pounds, Burden's game is remarkably similar to a player like Deebo Samuel, who was a YAC machine in San Francisco during his prime. At Missouri, Burden was often afforded chances to make plays himself in the open field, from bubble screens to jet sweeps and other players where the do-it-all wide receiver effectively turns into a punt returner in the open field, with his explosive ball skills making it all look effortless. Burden used these opportunities well, reading the field effectively while using his array of stutter steps, stiff arms, and change-of-pace stylings to turn nothing into something in a way that would make Barkley proud.
In the Eagles offense, Burden could fill a similar role on “gimmicky” plays, from lining up in the backfield as a change-of-pace back, to running the occasional sweep, and even producing big production as a screen specialist, taking advantage of the blocking mastery players like Brown and Smith have developed from their time playing with Barkley. Throw that together with the Eagles' need for a deep threat and their potential to be starting a rookie tight end this fall, and having another weapon like Burden could borderline guarantee that Philadelphia doesn't field the 29th-ranked passing offense again this fall.
Luther Burden III could eventually replace AJ Brown
If the Eagles traded away Brown during the 2025 NFL Draft, it would be a mistake.
If the Patriots offered up pick number four, then okay, maybe a deal could be made, but for anything less, trusting a rookie or the depth already on the roster to come in and replace one of the best wide receivers in the NFL would be a foolish endeavor, as the Tennessee Titans and Treylon Burks can eagerly attest.
With that being said, Brown will be 28 this fall and 32 in five years, when a player like Burden would be playing on the fifth year of his rookie contract. Considering how physical Brown's game is and how he will continue to want to be paid like a top-5 wide receiver for the foreseeable future, if the Eagles can find a wide receiver who can play at a similar level, or at least play at an elite WR2 level while Smith ascends to the WR1 rank, they should pursue it.
While Brown hasn't outright asked for a trade just yet, he did create headlines last fall for how he was used, with Hurts, Sirianni, and even Brandon Graham being drawn into the drama in the middle of a Super Bowl run. Unless the Eagles offense becomes Brown-centric, which feels unlikely while Barkley is around, it's worth wondering if he even makes it to his age 32 season in midnight green, or if this trade request time bomb will blow far sooner than most fans would like to see.
Will Burden be as good as Brown at any point in his NFL career? Maybe yes, maybe no, but considering the Eagles do have a need he could fill right now as a super slot equally capable of being a vertical and YAC threat, why not bring him into the program and find out his ceiling, all the while utilizing his NFL floor to make the offense better in the short-term all the same? Considering how expensive wide receivers are in 2025, bringing in Burden on a cost-controlled deal for the next half-decade would allow the Eagles to have their cake and eat it too as they continue to figure out their future.
