The Philadelphia Eagles used their 1st 2 picks in the 2026 NFL Draft on pass catchers, with USC wide receiver Makai Lemon in the 1st round (No. 23 overall) and Vanderbilt tight end and Mackey Award winner Eli Stowers in the 2nd round (No. 54 overall).
Through the 1st part of training camp, both have been unqualified disappointments. Lemon has been hurt and hasn’t practiced in 3 days due to hamstring issues.
Stowers has seemed objectively lost in picking up the offense, and admitted as much to The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Ryan Novozinsky.
“Biggest adjustment, I’d say, is probably the mental challenge,” Stowers told Novozinsky. “I think that the offense and the way the defenses do their schemes at this level, it’s a little more complex than it was in college. And so I think it’s a mental challenge, but that’s just about putting the time in and learning it and trying to get better with it.”
Stowers has become a hot topic in training camp over his inability to stand out in any way — not what the Eagles were hoping for in a player many thought could contribute right away and is being counted on to replace aging starter Dallas Goedert 1 day.
Eagles Ignored Injury Concerns With Eli Stowers
The Eagles have taken the last decade-plus to teach other teams how to find elite tight ends outside of the 1st round, doing so 1st with Zach Ertz in the 3rd round in 2023, then again with Dallas Goedert in the 2nd round in 2018.
They may have struck gold again with Vanderbilt tight end Eli Stowers in the 2nd round (No. 54 overall) of the 2026 NFL draft, although they may have had to overlook a serious injury concern to do so.
“Second-round tight end Eli Stowers (Vanderbilt) was widely considered TE2, but multiple teams viewed him as a big wideout, similar to Michael Pittman Jr.,” ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler wrote on Thursday. “That will give Philly flexibility in how it uses him. A few teams had knee concerns with Stowers due to a past injury, but by all indications the Eagles did not, and the issue is considered minor (he was durable throughout college).”
If Stowers does indeed have problems with his knee, then it’s even more incredible what he did at the NFL scouting combine in February. That’s where he wowed scouts with a 4.51-second 40-yard dash as well as clocking a 45.5-inch vertical leap.
“Oh my Lord,” ESPN’s Ben Solak wrote on his official X acount on February 27. “Vanderbilt TE Eli Stowers. 45.5-inch vertical jump. Tied with Cameron Wake for the third-highest vert in the Combine (since 1999).”
Flip Side: Eli Stowers Called ‘Steal of the Draft’
Stowers was called the “Steal of the Draft” by Fox Sports NFL reporter Ben Arthur.
“The athletic Stowers broke the vertical jump record for tight ends at the combine,” Arthur wrote. “Last season at Vanderbilt, he won the John Mackey Award as college football’s top tight end — in just his third year playing the position. His growth could be exponential in Philly, where he’s positioned to be Dallas Goedert’s successor.”
Stowers, 6-foot-4 and 239 pounds, has proven to be a pretty divisive prospect despite the sheer athleticism combined with top-notch production — he had 62 receptions for 769 yards and 4 touchdowns in 2025.
Bleacher Report’s Brent Solbeski handed the Eagles a “C” grade for taking Stowers, who might be looked as more of a tweener because of his size and speed. There was some thought teams might draft him and try to convert him into a full-time wide receiver at some point.
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