The Eagles aren't alone in their thinking. This team shied away from taking linebackers in the first round long before Reid arrived on the scene. In fact, the Eagles are closing in on three decades since Dick Vermeil selected UCLA's Jerry Robinson with the 21st overall pick in the first round.
Twenty-seven years, six coaches, two owners and zero championships later, they still haven't taken another first-round linebacker. No team in the NFL has gone longer.
"Linebackers - I'm not saying this is the case all the time - the first-round guys might be solid players, but they're not impact players," Heckert said. "But it still comes down to if we have a guy graded that high as a first-round player, I don't think we wouldn't take a guy just because he's a linebacker."
The Eagles' need for a linebacker was reduced last month when they traded defensive tackle Darwin Walker to the Buffalo Bills for linebacker Takeo Spikes, a two-time Pro Bowler. That deal probably means the Eagles' streak without taking a linebacker in the first round will reach 28 years Saturday unless a player they really value drops significantly from the top of the draft board.
One linebacker worth considering, if he somehow drifted to the Eagles' allotted 26th pick, is Mississippi's Patrick Willis. He has been touted as the best inside and overall linebacker in the draft, but he is expected to be gone by the time the Eagles make their pick.
Heckert said the Eagles believed three linebackers were worthy of being first-round picks in this draft. He included Penn State's Paul Posluszny in that group.
"I think he's a first-round player," Heckert said. "I just don't know where he goes."
