Emphasis on 'connection' makes Eagles great landing spot for Georgia draftees

Last year the Green Bay Packers seemed like the smart ones taking two Georgia players in the first round after selecting one the year before too. This year it’s the Philadelphia Eagles who continued that trend, following suite with their third first round Bulldog in two seasons and fourth player from Georgia in general.

Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni spoke with the media after Thursday’s first round. One thing that’s important to him: creating a culture of connection. Sound familiar?

It’s the same philosophy that Georgia head coach Kirby Smart abides by. Both have resulted in a winning organization, and it’s part of the reason why the Eagles’ selections of Jalen Carter and Nolan Smith make sense.

“I’m looking forward to continuing to get to know them. Connecting with all of our guys is a top priority,” Sirianni said. “I can’t tell you how many times, before our last game of the year in the Super Bowl last year, guys, the leaders on this team stood up and just talked about how connected they were and how tight this team was and is and how they didn’t want to let each other down. I think that’s a really good thing for both of those guys to step into.”

“I know one thing about winning teams. Winning teams have that connection,” he continued. “They’re coming from a program at Georgia where that connection is the same. They’re going to be stepping into this building where we feel like the connection is strong with our team as well.”

Carter and Smith not only step into the City of Brotherly Love with one of their Bulldog brothers joining them, they’ll also be joining two that were drafted by the Eagles organization last year. General manager Howie Roseman and company took Jordan Davis with their first round pick last year. He and Carter played alongside each other for two seasons on the Georgia defensive line and combined for 69 stops including 14 tackles for loss during the Bulldogs’ run to the 2021 National Championship. Then, at the second level, there’s Nakobe Dean – a third round selection, albeit a prospect with a first round grade from many – who came into Athens in the same signing class at his teammate once again Smith. Dean was even at Smith’s draft party on Thursday.

“There’s no doubt, Coach and I both talk to guys. We kind of have an atmosphere around here where a bunch of our guys are trying to recruit us to draft players from their colleges,” Roseman said. “Guys from Georgia want Georgia guys, guys from Alabama want Alabama guys … We’re always asking our guys, ‘Hey what do you think about this guy? You played with him. Would he be a good fit here?’ We also understand, you know, I’m not going to say bad things about my friends if you asked me, ‘Should I hire one of your friends?’ We understand that.”

Carter, who many saw as a player needing a strong foundation around him for future success based on his history, said he spoke with Davis just a few days before the draft and planned to get on FaceTime with both Davis and Dean before too long. He was excited about the opportunity to reconnect with two guys he viewed as leaders for him during his collegiate career.

“Coming back and playing with former teammates Jordan Davis and Nakobe Dean, you know that’s an exciting moment for me. Those guys were the leaders of the 2021 team, and I know that if I’ve got any questions, I can ask them and ask anybody else on the team,” Carter said. “The relationship is very close. We’re locked in. I actually talked to Jordan Davis, I think it was yesterday. Nakobe, we’ve been texting a little bit. I know they’re probably texting my phone now, so when I go get my phone, I know they’re going to have messages for me or we might have a FaceTime call real quick to talk about what we’re ’bout to do.”

“I’m so glad that they’re Eagles,” Sirianni added, speaking about his thoughts on pairing two Georgia players with a pair of 2022 draftees from the same school. “I’m so glad that they – you know, that’s a big thing. When you go away to college and you know somebody there, that helps. When you come into a profession and you know somebody, I know that helps. These guys know a lot of guys here. I’m really excited to continue to build on those connections.”