The student newspaper of Bucks County Community College

The Centurion

The student newspaper of Bucks County Community College

The Centurion

The student newspaper of Bucks County Community College

The Centurion

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Eagles hoping to fill holes with draft

With the 2015 NFL Draft fast approaching, all eyes are turned to the hometown Philadelphia Eagles to see what players they will select in order to improve the team.

Coming off a second straight 10-6 season under head coach Chip Kelly, Philadelphia is looking to acquire the pieces that will give them that extra push from a pretty good team to one that is contending for a Super Bowl.

The Eagles have already addressed some very crucial needs through free agency.

Cornerbacks Byron Maxwell and Walter Thurmond have been acquired from Seattle and New York respectively to bolster up a secondary that desperately needed it.

After the departure of LeSean McCoy in a trade that brought in stud linebacker Kiko Alonso to beef up the defense, star halfback Demarco Murray was picked up through free agency from Dallas.

Philadelphia also made a change at the quarterback position, sending Nick Foles to the Rams for Sam Bradford.

However, free agency alone is not enough to fill all of the holes that this Philadelphia Eagles team has.

The NFL Draft begins on April 30, and the Eagles look to do some damage in it if they want their squad looking sharp come minicamps in May.

“I believe they need to focus on the cornerbacks and quarterbacks in the draft,” said Tyler Gillen, 19, a liberal arts major from Langhorne.

“Don’t risk on (Marcus) Mariota but try and see if you can find a good mobile quarterback to back up Sam Bradford.”

Bucks students have different opinions on the Philadelphia Eagles’ biggest needs for a successful season.

“First of all, I think they need to get a true number one wide receiver,” said Tyler Jardine, 21, a business major from Perkasie.

“Josh Huff and Jordan Matthews are still young, and no team should be going into a season with Riley Cooper as their number one wide receiver.”

“Getting a fast wideout like DeSean Jackson in the draft will really stretch the field and open the running game for Demarco Murray,” continued Jardine.

Although the Eagles did sign two free agent cornerbacks already, it will take more than that to sure up what was the weakest secondary in the NFL last year.

“Grabbing the best safety available in the first round will be a great way to make sure that our secondary is vastly improved from 2014,” Jardine said.

There are seven rounds in the draft, so it allows Philadelphia the opportunity to address more than one position.

“Getting some offensive line help can’t hurt with the departure of some of our key guys,” Jardine said.

The Eagles currently have the 20th overall pick in the draft, but with how Chip Kelly has been wheeling and dealing, who knows what picks they will have once it is time to begin.

With a strong front seven on defense, a strong running game on offense, and strong special teams across the board, all of the Eagles positions could be filled if they play their cards right.

The only thing left now for the fans to do is sit back, buckle up, and enjoy what they can of the wild ride that is sure to come.