ESPN draft guru Mel Kiper released his first official NFL mock draft of the year and his pick for the Philadelphia Eagles should be a familiar name for anyone who has been paying attention to other early mocks, Boston College LB Luke Kuechly. Here's what he had to say.
↵↵↵The Eagles were really weak up the middle in 2011, and Kuechly is the top interior linebacker available in the draft. Since Brian Dawkins departed, safety has also been a perpetual question mark, so I could see that being considered here. But in Kuechly you get a player who can fill a massive void in the defense. He's a guy who can come in and start immediately; he's got exceptional instincts, is a very good athlete, demonstrates great form and can fly around making tackles in the middle of the field. He's just a machine. Last year, few teams were forced to utilize lesser talent at linebacker than Philly, and Kuechly can help fix that problem.
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Luke Kuechly has been easily the most popular early name for the Eagles, but overall the mockers seem to agree that LB should be the target. Whether it's Dont'a Hightower of Alabama, Keuchly or Vontaze Burfict of Arizona St, these are the names we'll likely see being connected to Philly in the coming weeks/months.