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NFL draft: Latest Eagles rumors and mock drafts; who the experts think the Birds will take

The Eagles have several needs to fill and the A.J. Brown situation lingering as they approach the 2026 NFL Draft

Eagles general manager Howie Roseman has been in charge of all but one of the last 16 Eagles draft classes.
Eagles general manager Howie Roseman has been in charge of all but one of the last 16 Eagles draft classes. Read more
Yong Kim / Staff Photographer
What you should know

  1. The 2026 NFL Draft begins Thursday night at 8 p.m. on ESPN, ABC, and the NFL Network. The draft runs through Saturday.

  2. The Eagles enter the draft with the No. 23 pick, but general manger Howie Roseman is known to wheel and deal.

  3. Here are 14 potential first-round targets for the Eagles and our final mock draft, which has the Birds trading up.

  4. The Eagles should draft replacements for Jalen Hurts and A.J. Brown this year, writes columnist Marcus Hayes.

Who our beat writers think the Eagles will draft

The Inquirer’s annual Draft Meter is where our beat writers rate NFL draft prospects on a scale from 1 to 10, with 10 being most likely that the Eagles will pick that player, and 1 being least likely.

This year, we rated 14 players.

Here’s who we think is most likely to be on the team by the end of Thursday night — and it's worth noting that our meter has correctly predicted the Eagles' first pick in four of the last five drafts ...

Mike Sielski hates the NFL draft, and thinks you should, too

Who will the Eagles draft? Here's what the experts predict.

Which player will the Eagles take in the first round of the 2026 NFL draft?

We won't know for sure until later tonight, but the experts at The Inquirer, ESPN, and elsewhere have filed their final mock drafts, so here's what some of them predict will happen.

Devin Jackson, Philadelphia Inquirer: Monroe Freeling, OT, Georgia (No. 19 pick via trade)

Eagles have eight picks heading into this year’s draft

The Eagles have eight picks entering the draft, though that’s likely to change with Howie Roseman at the helm.

Since 2010 (and excluding 2015, when ex-coach Chip Kelly was in charge), Roseman has averaged more than three trades per draft, according to NFL data.

Last year, the Birds made five trades, including sending C.J. Gardner-Johnson to the Houston Texans and exchanging backup quarterback Kenny Pickett for Dorian Thompson-Robinson, who was cut before the season started and is now a backup in the UFL.

What time does the NFL draft start?

The 2026 NFL draft is scheduled to begin at 8 p.m. Eastern and run through 11:30 p.m.

This year’s traveling road show is taking place in Pittsburgh, with the main stage set up at Acrisure Stadium, the home of the Steelers. The city expects several hundreds of thousands of people to travel to Pittsburgh for the event.

Here’s everything you need to know to watch or stream the first round of the NFL Draft.

  1. When: Thursday, April 23

  2. Where: Pittsburgh, Pa.

  3. Time: 8 p.m. Eastern

  4. TV: ABC, ESPN, NFL Network, ESPN Deportes

  5. Streaming: ESPN+, NFL+

2026 NFL draft: Updated first-round draft order

The Las Vegas Raiders hold the No. 1 pick in the draft, which they're expected to use to nab Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza.

It's just the second time in NFL history the Raiders have had the No. 1 overall pick. They entered the draft with the top pick in 2007, which they used to select LSU quarterback JaMarcus Russell, who lasted just three seasons with the Raiders.

Five teams don’t have a single first-round pick: Green Bay Packers, Atlanta Falcons, Denver Broncos, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Indianapolis Colts.