If you've watched the NFL Draft over the past two years, we'd understand if you started referring to the Philadelphia Eagles as the Georgia Eagles or Philadelphia Bulldogs. Over the last two drafts, the Eagles and general manager Howie Roseman have added four members of the Georiga Bulldogs defense—three of the four went in the first round, with the other falling to the third round who had first-round hype.
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Here, we'll look back at the Eagles past two drafts regarding the Georgia draft picks. After all when defense wins championships, go out and find the best defense possible.
2022 - Jordan Davis, DT (1; 13)
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The first Georgia defensive player the Eagles selected was the massive defensive tackle, Jordan Davis. At six-foot-six and 341 pounds, Davis ran a 4.78 40-yard dash, which was incredible considering his size. The Eagles traded up the No. 13 overall, dealing No. 15, No. 124, No. 162, and No. 166 to jump the Baltimore Ravens and take Davis.
In his rookie season with the Eagles, Davis played sparingly. He played in 270 total snaps (142 in run defense; 128 rushing the passer) at nose tackle and finished the year with 12 total pressures and 17 tackles.
Overall, it was a solid rookie campaign for playing so little.
2022 - Nakobe Dean, LB (3; 83)
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Heading into the 2022 NFL Draft, Georgia linebacker Nakobe Dean had first-round hype due to his talent at the position. However, during the pre-draft process, it came out that Dean had some medical red flags relating to a pectoral injury that he declined to have surgery on.
The 2021 Butkus Award winner would go on to be selected by the Eagles at No. 83 overall. His five-foot-eleven size didn't help his draft stock either, but his six sacks, 10.5 tackles for loss, and two interceptions helped outweigh that a bit. He's an explosive athlete, and he'll look to help contribute more on defense in his second season with the Eagles.
Primarily playing special teams in his rookie season, Dean played a total of 47 snaps on defense. According to Ourlads, Dean is slated to be the starting middle linebacker in 2023.
2023 - Jalen Carter DT (1; 9)
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OK, here we go. Now the Eagles are really cooking.
The Eagles owned the No. 10 overall pick thanks to their trade in 2022, allowing the New Orleans Saints to come up and get Chris Olave.
With that No. 10 overall pick, they packaged it with a fourth-round pick in 2024 to swap spots with the Chicago Bears and select Georgia defensive tackle, Jalen Carter.
Viewed by many as the top prospect in the draft, Carter fell due to off-the-field concerns. As you'll likely recall, an arrest warrant was issued for Carter during the NFL Combine. This was related to an incident in January in which a crash led to the death of a Georgia teammate and team staffer. Carter pleaded no contest to misdemeanor charges. The incident was allegedly a situation where Carter was street racing the staffer, Chander LeCroy, and the player, Devin Willock.
Carter turned himself on, was released on bond, and was eventually sentenced to 12 months of probation, a $1,000 fine, and 80 hours of community service.
All of this likely led to teams taking Carter off their board.
However, the Eagles didn't. They're in a unique situation where they had two of his former teammates who will likely be a great source of comfort for him as he looks to dominate alongside Davis in that defensive interior.
And, oh yeah, the Eagles would go on to add one more Georgia defensive lineman.
2023 - Nolan Smith, EDGE (1; 30)
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In moving up to get Carter, the Eagles retained their original first-round selection, No. 30 overall. Outside of quarterback Will Levis, there was one notable name that continued to slip down boards—Georgia edge rusher Nolan Smith.
Smith has one of the strangest but most intriguing edge rusher builds in the NFL.
In college, Smith only played 188 snaps in his final season due to injury. Still, the Eagles are getting a player that's six-foot-three, 235 pounds and ran a 4.39 40-yard dash and had a 41.5-inch vertical.
That's unreal athleticism for an edge rusher.
Of course, he's undersized. He'll never be able to play anywhere remotely inside of a defensive line because of that, but he won't need to with his fellow Bulldogs Davis and Carter taking up that real estate.
2023 - Kelee Ringo, CB (4; 105)
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Viewed as a top prospect heading into the 2022-23 College Football campaign, Ringo fell just outside the top 100.
Ringo has excellent straight-line speed but isn't as malleable outside of that. He's a tremendous athlete, but it'll be interesting to see if the Eagles view him as an outside cornerback at six-foot-two and over 200 pounds or as a safety.
2023 - D'Andre Swift, RB (Trade)
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To add to the fleet of Bulldogs, the Eagles traded for a 2017-2019 album in running back Swift. The compensation was almost nothing. The Eagles gave up a 2025 fifth-round pick, and there was a seventh-round pick swap.
Swift joins a running back room with Kenneth Gainwell, Rashaad Penny, Boston Scott, and Trey Sermon.
Since entering the NFL, it's been difficult for Swift to stay on the field. He hasn't played more than 14 games in a season or seen beyond 151 carries. However, Swift is a plus pass catcher, catching at least 46 passes in his first three years.
Swift won't need to be the every-down back for the Eagles, which should help maximize his efforts and health.
The Eagles have replacements in place for when Fletcher Cox and Brandon Graham inevitably retire, and opposing quarterbacks will have four members of the Georgia Bulldogs legendary defense coming at them for years to come.
