The Athletic’s Nick Baumgardner singled out one of the Eagles’ 2025 picks as one of the “Best Value” selections in the draft with linebacker Smael Mondon Jr., who was taken in the fifth round (No. 161 overall) out of the University of Georgia.
Baumgardner had Mondon projected as a third round or fourth round pick.
“A three-year starter for Kirby Smart at Georgia, Mondon’s length and speed at 6-2, 224 turned him into a heavy producer inside one of the country’s most talented defensive units,” Baumgardner wrote. “Mondon, who has dealt with several injuries, is a leader and one of the most vocal defenders in this class.”
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Mondon signed a 4-year, $4.595 million rookie contract with the Eagles on May 2.
From 5-Star Prospect to 2-Time National Champion
Mondon was a 5-star prospect out of Paulding County (Georgia) High School before staying home to play for Georgia, where he won a pair of College Football Playoff national championships in 2021 and 2022.
In 2022, Mondon led the Bulldogs with 76 tackles to go with 8 TFL, 1 interception and 1.0 sack despite missing 2 games with an injury.
The big knock on Mondon has been injuries, which likely led to him dropping to the fifth round. In total, he missed 7 games with injuries over his last 3 seasons, including a career high 4 games in 2024 with a left leg injury. That followed surgery to repair a stress fracture in his his foot in the spring.
Mondon did bounce back at the NFL scouting combine, where he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.58 seconds and registered a broad jump of 10 feet, 10 inches. NFL draft analyst Lance Zierlein had Mondon projected as a third round pick in his pre-draft evaluation.
“Mondon is physical and can run,” Zierlein wrote. “He’s quick to flow downhill and challenge blocks with good pop … He’s effective on passing downs with good coverage and blitz talent. The run game instincts could slow him early in his career, but he’s a battle-tested, three-down option with special teams value and starting potential.”
Pipeline From Georgia to Eagles Keeps Flowing
It’s been one of the great NFL draft quirks in recent memory that Philadelphia general manager Howie Roseman — a University of Florida graduate — continues to select players from Georgia’s defense. With Mondon now in the fold, it means Roseman and the Eagles have selected 6 Georgia defensive players in the last 4 drafts — and that’s without picking any Bulldogs in the 2024 NFL draft.
It’s fair at this point to say the Philadelphia defense is built around Georgia players, where the influence is most noticeable on the defensive front. That’s where a trio of former first round picks reside with defensive tackle Jordan Davis, edge rusher Nolan Smith and NFL All-Pro defensive tackle Jalen Carter.
Carter, the No. 9 overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft, has established himself as one of the NFL’s elite interior defensive linemen and could become the highest paid defensive player of all time in the near future.
