EAGLES STEAL OF THE DRAFT? Jihaad Campbell Could Be Philly’s Secret Weapon

It certainly seems like Howie Roseman struck gold once again for the Philadelphia Eagles, at least on paper.

The Eagles' pass rush specifically took a hit this offseason but the front office has done a good job re-grouping. Philadelphia started off the offseason by adding guys like Josh Uche and Azeez Ojulari in free agency. Those were good moves already but arguably isn't even the best one the team has made.

As the National Football League Draft approached, rumors grew that the Eagles could look to move up. It wasn't clear who they wanted to get. The Eagles had the No. 32 pick after winning the Super Bowl and did end up moving up, but just one spot to No. 31. The Eagles used the pick to select former Alabama linebacker Jihaad Campbell.

This is a guy who was widely considered to be a top-10 talent in the 2025 draft class, but dropped due to injury concern. Some teams clearly were nervous to bring him to town, but not the Eagles. If he's healthy he'll likely have an impact from the day No. 1.

Clearly, the pick has been praised across the league. Bleacher Report's Brent Sobleski even called the move Philadelphia's "most dangerous new addition" of the offseason.

"Welp, he finally did it with the selection of Alabama's Jihaad Campbell. Or did he? Campbell served as an edge-defender for the Crimson Tide before making the full-time conversion to off-ball linebacker," Sobleski said "Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio can use him in a variety of manners to disguise defenses and create pressure different pressure packages to confuse opposing quarterbacks.

"'Jihaad Campbell was one of the higher grades I've given for a linebacker,' an NFL executive told The Athletic's Mike Sando. 'Vic Fangio will use (Zack) Baun off the ball and Campbell on the ball, and that is huge. They will be the blitzers in the simulated four-man pressures that Vic runs. It can be like Patrick Willis and NaVorro Bowman in San Francisco.' Campbell may never be a full-time edge-defender, but his skill set allows him to be used as a defensive chess piece, as long as he stays healthy. A postseason shoulder surgery dropped the 21-year-old prospect to the 31st overall pick despite being a top-15 talent."

There's a lot of excitement around this kid in Philadelphia already.