For the third straight year, the Eagles made a trade in the first round of the NFL Draft.
By the end of the weekend, it was just the beginning of a flurry of moves up, down and all around the draft as the Eagles worked the phones to stockpile picks for this year and next year.
When Missouri wide receiver Jeremy Maclin slipped into the late teens, the Eagles leapfrogged the Detroit Lions into the 19th overall spot to nab the dynamic receiver. The Eagles gave the Cleveland Browns their first-round pick at No. 21 and a sixth-round pick (No. 195 overall). That sixth-round pick was a conditional selection acquired back in 2007 when the Eagles sent quarterback Kelly Holcomb to the Vikings.
The Eagles began Sunday with seven draft picks, but that quickly changed. The Eagles shipped a third-round pick (the 85th overall) to the New York Giants to move back six spots to No. 91 and a 2009 fifth-round pick (No. 164 overall). Mind you that the Eagles already started the day with four fifth-round picks.
Five fifth-round picks were not enough for the Eagles. They moved the newly-acquired 91st pick to the Seahawks for the opening pick of the fifth round (No. 137 overall), a seventh-round pick for this year (No. 213 overall) and a third-round pick in 2010.
In 2007, the Eagles sent their first-round pick (No. 26 overall) to the Dallas Cowboys for a second-round pick, a third-round pick and a fifth-round pick. The Cowboys drafted backup linebacker Anthony Spencer, while the Eagles nabbed quarterback Kevin Kolb, middle linebacker Stewart Bradley and safety C.J. Gaddis. The extra fifth-round pick allowed the Eagles to draft their starting tight end Brent Celek.
One year later, the Eagles sent the 19th overall pick to Carolina for a second-round pick, a fourth-round pick and this year's first-round pick. The Panthers drafted starting tackle Jeff Otah, while the Eagles got defensive tackle Trevor Laws and guard Mike McGlynn. The extra second-round pick allowed the Eagles to get wide receiver DeSean Jackson and the first-round pick was packaged to get two-time All-Pro left tackle Jason Peters from Buffalo.
