"There are going to be some guys that play, that for one reason or another didn't get drafted high, but the top three guys you're hoping can play, because they're going to go early," Heckert said.
Jason Smith and Monroe could go in the top five, and it could be difficult for the Eagles to move that far up the board. To do that, the Eagles might have to trade both of their first-round picks.
"Never say never, but I would find that highly unlikely," Heckert said.
Heckert said it might take less than two first-round picks to move into the top 10, but he is not sure exactly what it would take.
Andre Smith is the most controversial of the elite tackles because he had some conditioning issues at the scouting combine in Indianapolis and he did not work out. By some accounts, Smith also had a pedestrian workout at his pro day, but Heckert disagreed and spoke highly of the 325-pound Alabama tackle who fired his agent Alvin Keels on Sunday. Smith is expected to hire a new agent Friday.
"You just have to look into [the problems]," Heckert said. "We've kind of made the combine such a media spectacle, which is fine, but what happened [in Indianapolis] really wasn't that big of a deal. The kid is a good kid. It was just something that happened and it snowballed. If the guy is a good player, he's still going to be a good player."
And then there is Buffalo Bills left tackle Jason Peters.
The Bills and Peters have been working on a new contract, but no deal is in sight.
Heckert was asked if the Bills had contacted the Eagles about Peters, who staged a lengthy holdout from Buffalo's training camp last season.
"I can't say that," he said.
Heckert said the Eagles have not talked to Peters' agent Vincent Taylor, which would be a necessary prelude to any trade because the sides would have to hammer out a new contract.
