Coming into this year's draft, the Eagles' front office knew that adding depth along the offensive line would be one of their primary goals. In Isaac Seumalo, selected 79th overall in the third round, Philadelphia acquired a player who they believe can play any of the five positions along the line at the pro level.
Seumalo, a redshirt junior out of Oregon State, started nine games last season at right guard and three at left tackle. As a sophomore and freshman, he started 23 games at center and two more at right tackle. In Philadelphia, he'll start out as a guard, but Howie Roseman and head coach Doug Pederson believe that the 6-4, 303-pound lineman could one day play on the outside. With some uncertainty at the left guard position, where veterans Stefan Wisniewski and Allen Barbre figure to battle it out in Training Camp, there could be the potential for Seumalo to compete for a starting job right away.
"As a competitor and as a player, I want to come in and play right away. But at the same time I want to learn from the best," he told reporters via conference call on Friday night. "I feel comfortable on the interior, and I know I can play outside in a pinch, but I'm going to come in and compete my butt off and do what the coaches ask me to do."
In 2012, Seumalo became the first true freshman to start at center for Oregon State in nearly 35 years. He earned an All-Pac-12 honorable mention that year and was named to a handful of freshman All-America teams. As a sophomore, he earned All-Pac-12 second-team honors, but broke his foot during the Hawaii Bowl. It was an injury that forced him to designate as a medical redshirt in 2014.
Seumalo's foot injury required two surgeries, the second of which involved a bone graft in addition to the insertion of a screw. Last season, he returned to action and started all 12 of Oregon State's games, earning a All-Pac-12 honorable mention accolades in the process. According to Roseman, the Eagles' medical staff examined the 22-year-old's foot before the draft and were not concerned with his long-term health prospects.
Because Seumalo attends a school that is on a quarter system rather than a semester system, he will only be able to take part in the rookie minicamp prior to the summer because NFL rules mandate that draftees complete the academic year before joining their teams. Oregon State's commencement ceremony on June 11, two days after the Eagles' final minicamp of the summer.
