Eagles News: “No one should be surprised if the Uar Bernard gamble works out”

PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA - APRIL 25: International Player Pathway athlete Uar Bernard celebrates after being chosen by the Philadelphia Eagles with the 251st overall pick in the green room during third day of the NFL football draft at Acrisure Stadium on April 25, 2026 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Michael Owens/Getty Images) | Getty Images ***Let’s get to the Philadelphia Eagles news and links …*** Albert Breer’s Takeaways: Why Steelers (and NFL Fans) Need Another Year from Aaron Rodgers – SI I can’t wait to see what the Eagles do with Uar Bernard. If you’re not familiar, Google him. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a human being like him. The 21-year-old Nigerian is listed as 6’ 5” and 306 pounds, and at his pro day, he ran a 4.63 40-yard dash, posted a 39-inch vertical and broad-jumped 10’10”. And when I say Google him, I’m not referencing those numbers. Click on the images tab and I’m telling you, you’ll be stunned that a 306-pounder can look like that. Philly took a flier on Bernard—who’s a part of the NFL’s International Player Pathway Program—in the seventh round of the draft, the same way they once took a flier on a freak athlete of a rugby player from Australia named Jordan Mailata. Seven years after the Eagles threw a seventh-rounder at Mailata, who, like Bernard, had never played football, I sat with owner Jeffrey Lurie the day before Mailata started his second Super Bowl. He compared drafting Mailata to his beloved Celtics spending a top-10 draft pick on Larry Bird in 1978, knowing they wouldn’t get him until 1979. “This goes back a little to the Larry Bird example,” said Lurie. “Could we say he’s the 53rd player on the roster no matter what for the next three years? That was the attitude. We’re just going to develop him. He didn’t even know what the shape of an American football looked like. We knew he was a good person. He was very young. We didn’t want to take a chance not drafting him. “Howie [Roseman] did an incredible job. We didn’t have a seventh-round pick, and he and I sort of got together and said, ‘We have to not take this to chance, the upside is too great; let’s find a way to get a seventh-round pick.’ So we [traded for] a seventh-round pick and took Jordan. I mean it was all about development. It was identifying through our coach Jeff Stoutland the physical potential. It was also just allocating, saying the first two or three years may not be great, but he’s our 53rd player no matter what. There’s not ever going to be a discussion of him not being on the roster. “Stout and those guys just did a phenomenal job of developing him. That’s a success story. You do it sometimes and it doesn’t work, but then it goes back to that philosophy of keep doing it because you’re doing it the right way.” It happens because the Eagles have an ex-player in Connor Barwin who does a really good job of making sure the guys who aren’t playing 50 snaps on Sundays are developing. And that’s because the Eagles invest in assistant position coaches behind the primary position coaches to keep those guys working when the team’s focus turns to the games in the fall, and because the personnel department doesn’t overthink it when a special athlete is there. That’s why no one should be surprised if the Bernard gamble works out. And even if it doesn’t, there’s a chance the next one does. Eagles Film Review: Micah Morris is a developmental gamble – BGN Micah Morris is not a finished product. He has a strong physical profile and is a developmental bet, which is worth a flier on Day 3. The Eagles are relying on Landon Dickerson and Tyler Steen at guard in 2026. Given Dickerson’s injury history and his future in question, having someone develop behind him with a physical ceiling makes a lot of sense. Morris on the active roster (or phantom IR…), where he can learn the system and develop his fundamentals for a full year before anyone asks him to do anything meaningful, is the realistic and correct expectation. The physical tools are the reason to be excited. The Eagles have built a recent track record of finding late-round offensive linemen with elite traits and developing them patiently, and Morris fits that template precisely. This is a pick for 2027 and 2028, not for 2026. If the Eagles staff gets his pad level right, builds his fundamentals, and gives him the time to accumulate snaps in practice before asking him to play, then the tools are there for something worth watching. As sixth-round swings go, I like this one. More on the Safety Position – Iggles Blitz Howie Roseman is always looking upgrade his roster. He believes in putting together the most talented team possible. The key word here is upgrade. He obviously has some comfort level with Drew Mukuba and Marcus Epps as his projected safeties. If not, he would have made a move by now. The question he asks in regard to Moore or any other potential target…is he a clear upgrade? Howie has two players in place who have been in the system. Epps has started 29 games for the Eagles over a five-year span. They know him and what he can do. Mukuba was a player they targeted in the 2025 draft and were thrilled to get. These guys aren’t just bodies. The coaches and front office like them. Fans for whatever reason have doubts. They want a proven veteran that they have heard of or read about to be the guy. Epps and Mukuba don’t cost much. They played well last year. Howie isn’t making a change for the sake of it. The change has to be a clear upgrade. I think the team wants to see the whole group in action this summer. How do Epps and Mukuba work together? Is Michael Carter part of the mix? How does he do if he gets and extended shot at playing safety? He’ll have a full offseason in the scheme and that is valuable. And of course they’re excited to see how Cole Wisniewski does. Andre Sam is a player they like. Brandon Johnson could play safety or nickel. Then you have UDFAs Maximus Pulley and Kapena Gushiken. Safety is one position where you can find diamonds in the rough. There will be some serious competition. Former Eagles WR Jordan Matthews wants his sons to be like ‘Pro Bowl-talent’ Eli Stowers – The Athletic After playing 11 years in the NFL and coaching at Vanderbilt last season, Jordan Matthews tried to identify the players he wanted his children to emulate. He settled on two. One will play for the Philadelphia Eagles next season. “I would love for my boys to be like Eli Stowers,” Matthews said during a recent interview with The Athletic. “I don’t know if I can compliment a person better than that.” Matthews, who played five seasons for the Eagles, came to this conclusion after spending last year with the Eagles’ second-round pick while on Vanderbilt’s coaching staff. The Eagles were drawn to Stowers’ elite production as the nation’s top tight end and record-setting athletic testing at the combine. Matthews’ insight was based on all the moments in between — from the way he practiced to the way he studied, from his temperament to his faith. Matthews called Stowers “the blueprint.” “I think early on in the NFL, when people meet Eli, they try and get him to break a little bit like, ‘OK, is this real? Who is this guy, really?’” Matthews said. He offered a pre-emptive message to Stowers’ teammates: “It’s not fake. It’s very real. It’s not forced.” Browns have 53 players at rookie minicamp. Which of the 25 tryouts will win a roster spot? – Dawgs By Nature Throughout the season, the Browns will often bring in players for tryouts. However, this is the first time I can recall seeing a veteran player participate in rookie minicamp on a tryout basis. I am referring to WR Jalen Reagor, who was formerly a first-round pick of the Philadelphia Eagles. The next options for WR George Pickens and the Dallas Cowboys – Blogging The Boys By now we all know wide receiver George Pickens will play the 2026 NFL season under the $27.3 million franchise tag and the Dallas Cowboys have no intentions of trading him. What we don’t know is what’s next for these two? Does Pickens have a long-term future in Dallas? Today, we dive into the Cowboys options to help determine which one could be best for the future of the organization. Let’s get started. Where Antonio Williams prefers to play in Washington Commanders offense – Hogs Haven Antonio Williams is primarily known as a slot receiver. He ran 78% of his routes from there during his standout Clemson career, per The Ringer, and 93% of them from the slot in 2025. That’s, well, a lot. He’s capable of winning on the outside, too, which shows up a ton on his tape. Where will the Commanders play their third-round pick? Most predict he’ll play almost exclusively inside. What is Williams’ preference? The No. 71 overall NFL draft pick was asked that question after the first Commanders rookie minicamp practice. “I prefer everything,” Williams said in a Friday press conference. “I feel like that’s when I’m at my best. I feel like I’m a versatile player and I can line up everywhere and run every route. So, I just like being able to go everywhere and I feel like I just have a lot of freedom to do that in this offense.” 2026 NFL rookies: Day 2-3 draft picks with instant impact – ESPN Antonio Williams, WR, Washington Commanders (No. 71). Draft position and fit are why Williams cracks this list. He is an extremely experienced, savvy, pro-ready wideout who can start in the slot from Day 1. The Commanders needed receiver help alongside Terry McLaurin, and Williams will compete with players such as Dyami Brown and Luke McCaffrey for snaps. I love Williams’ instincts, as he was a persistent chain-mover at Clemson. Giants’ assistant GM Brandon Brown on ‘building the bully’ John Harbaugh wants – Big Blue View The best thing about annual post-NFL Draft chats with New York Giants assistant general manager Brandon Brown is Brown’s willingness to go into depth on how and why the team makes certain decisions. From individual player decisions to adjusting to working with coach John Harbaugh, Brown did not disappoint when he met with the media on Saturday at the team’s rookie minicamp. Giants’ Jaxson Dart’s reaction to Francis Mauigoa saying he was ‘ready to die for’ him: ‘That’s the kind of player that I want to play for’ – NFL.com Perhaps taking a cue from the New England Patriots’ Will Campbell professing his eternal protection to his franchise quarterback just a draft earlier, Francis Mauigoa pledged to shield his New York Giants signal-caller Jaxson Dart even it called for the ultimate sacrifice. “I’ll die by this s—, man,” Mauigoa told ESPN’s Laura Rutledge on the 2026 NFL Draft stage moments after he was selected 10th overall as the second offensive lineman off the board. “Man, I’m ready to die for you, man. I know a lot of things has happened, bro, but I’m ready to die for you, bro.” Can you guess this NFL corner in today’s in-5 trivia game? – SB Nation Hello football fans! Welcome to the SB Nation NFL in-5 daily trivia game. Click on “Instructions” to learn how to play the game. Feel free to share your results in the comments and feedback in this Google Form. … **Social Media Information:** BGN Facebook Page: **Click here to like our page** BGN Twitter: **Follow @BleedingGreen** BGN BlueSky: **Follow @bleedgreennation.bsky.social** BGN Instagram: **Follow @BleedingGreenInsta** BGN Manager: Follow Brandon Lee Gowton on **Twitter** | **BlueSky** | **Threads** BGN Radio Twitter: **Follow @BGN\_Radio**

The Feed post of the day

Each day, we highlight a BGN community post here in this space. Head over to **The Feed** to submit your entry and have a chance to be featured in The Linc!