We have made the case that the Philadelphia Eagles should select an offensive tackle in the first round of the 2026 NFL draft. That’s the sensible thing to do at No. 23 overall.
But if drafting an offensive tackle is the Eagles’ plan, there’s one prospect who could change it.
It’s not an edge rusher. It’s not a wide receiver replacement for A.J. Brown. But it is a unique, freakish weapon for Jalen Hurts and new offensive coordinator Sean Mannion.
The mystery player, if you haven’t guessed it already, is Oregon tight end Kenyon Sadiq.
Sadiq is the one prospect who could seriously change the Eagles’ draft plans if he’s available at No. 23 overall. Let’s examine why that’s the case.
We’ll start by acknowledging that it’s unlikely that Sadiq will be on the board for general manager Howie Roseman.
There’s a less than 20% chance that Sadiq will be available for the Eagles at No. 23 overall, according to ESPN’s draft day predictor.
ESPN ranked Sadiq, the only tight end with a first-round grade, as the draft’s No. 11 overall prospect. The Athletic’s Dane Brugler ranked Sadiq as his No. 16 prospect. ESPN’s Jordan Reid believes Sadiq’s “floor” — the lowest he could be drafted — is No. 19 overall to the Panthers. That coincides with his consensus mock draft landing spot.
There has also been a recent run of tight ends going earlier. Only two tight ends were drafted in the first round from 2020-24. But in the last two drafts, three have gone in the top 15: Brock Bowers (No. 13, 2024), Colston Loveland (No. 10, 2025), Tyler Warren (No. 14, 2025).
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Sadiq fits the Bowers/Loveland/Warren mold of a game-changing, unicorn talent that teams — such as the Ravens (No. 14), Buccaneers (No. 15) and Panthers — will have a hard time passing on.
Simply put, the draft is unpredictable. The Eagles know that first-hand.
No one expected Quinyon Mitchell to fall to the Eagles at No. 22 overall in 2024. Mitchell was the No. 11 prospect in his draft class. Seven corners were drafted in the top 10 from 2020-23. The trend and the player suggested Mitchell wouldn’t be there for Philadelphia.
And yet, the Eagles waited patiently. Other teams addressed other needs, and the future All-Pro cornerback fell nicely to Roseman and Co. at No. 22.
The same thing could happen with Sadiq despite his unique combination of athleticism, production and potential.
Maybe the Ravens go with Penn State guard Vega Ioane at No. 14. Maybe the Bucs go with an edge rusher at No. 15. Maybe the Panthers take the top wide receiver available at No. 19. All of that is possible.
While we still contend that it makes the most sense for the Eagles to draft an offensive tackle, Roseman acknowledged last week that you “can’t dictate the board.”
Roseman and his staff use a tiered approach in the draft. Four or five prospects will be clustered together, and the Eagles will go tier by tier with their selections.
We don’t know which players are in which tiers. But there’s a world in which Sadiq is in a tier with the Eagles’ top tackle prospects. And while there are seven tackles worth taking in the first round according to most experts, maybe Roseman and the Eagles view things differently.
For example, maybe the top tier of Eagles targets consists of Sadiq and the best tackles in the class: Utah’s Spencer Fano, Miami’s Francis Mauigoa and Georgia’s Monroe Freeling. If those three tackles are gone and Sadiq is left standing, Roseman will stick to his guns.