Eagles Draft Day Round 2: Undersized, Aggressive Safety Added

PHILADELPHIA -

The Skinny: The Eagles stayed put at the bottom of the second round and took undersized Texas safety Andrew Mukuba at No. 64 overall.

Mukuba, who started his college career at Clemson before finishing at Texas, is 5-foot-11 and 186 pounds and may need to add some size to handle full-time work at the safety position.

He was announced as a defensive back when former Eagles defensive lineman and Wisconsin product Beau Allen relayed the pick from Green Bay. Mukuba does have some experience playing the slot in college, but is far more comfortable playing safety and looks the part on the back end from an aggressiveness standpoint.

Presumably, he will start with the safeties, a group led by Reed Blankenship with third-year player Sydney Brown expected to stay up after veteran C.J. Gardner-Johnson was traded to Houston in the offseason. The backups on hand include Tristin McCollum, Lewis Cine, and Andre Sam'.

“What a great addition to our program Andrew was. Not just as a player, but as a leader, a teammate and a tremendous example of hard work and dedication," Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said. "He just puts his head down, gives it all he’s got all of the time and is an incredible teammate. He was a really good football player for us this year who helped us win a lot of games, made big plays and always stepped up when he was needed.

"Andrew is very versatile, played well in the run game, is excellent in pass defense and has some position flexibility. I think the Eagles will see his practice habits, his preparation, and the things that lead to positive performances on game day will really make him a great pro. Those are characteristics he had that will serve him well in the NFL.”

Instant Reaction: If the Eagles wanted a safety to push Brown, Xavier Watts of Notre Dame or Kevin Winston Jr. were available and seemingly better equipped to be full-timers on the back end.

The latter is coming off an ACL injury, and it may have been tough to select after investing in a player (Jihaad Campbell) currently rehabbing from shoulder surgery in the first round. Early on, perhaps Mukuba could serve as a backup at multiple positions in the secondary, somewhat replicating what veteran Avonte Maddox did last season.

Should Have Selected: Watts and Winston Jr. were higher-rated on many boards. Toledo defensive tackle Darius Alexander went to the New York Giants one pick after Mukuba and could have helped, as could have Bowling Green tight end Harold Fannin Jr, who was selected at No. 67 by Cleveland.