12 Philadelphia Eagles players who would be at risk of being stolen if the NFL decided to have another expansion draft

The Philadelphia Eagles reached the NFL mountain top last season by winning Super Bowl LIX over the Kansas City Chiefs. Now they go into the offseason with the goal of repeating as champs, but will have to do with a much bigger target on their back. 

While they worry about that, our staff decided to perform a hypothetical NFL expansion draft. The last time the NFL had an expansion draft was when they introduced the Houston Texans in 2002. But what would happen if the 33rd team in the NFL were introduced, and how would it affect the Eagles directly?

Early next week, A to Z Sports' Wendell Ferreira will be sharing the results of our hypothetical expansion draft, including the team's name and their roster. Before that could happen, though, each team had to make players available to be drafted.

Hypothetical NFL Expansion Draft Rules

1. Each current NFL team has to leave 12 players unprotected.
   
   
2. ⁠Players with 0 or 1 accrued seasons are automatically protected and can't be on the list. Players with no-trade clauses also aren't eligible.
   
   
3. ⁠If the player is selected, the expansion team will absorb both his future salaries and signing bonus prorations.
   
   
4. ⁠The list is final, meaning that teams can't withdraw a player after another one has been selected.
   
   
5. ⁠The expansion team can select a maximum of two players from each NFL team and a total of 40 players.

12 unprotected Eagles' players

Offensive unprotected players

• Tanner McKee, QB
• Dorian Thompson-Robinson, QB
• Avery Williams, WR
• Danny Gray, WR
• Nick Musre, TE
• Harrison Bryant, TE
• Matt Pryor, OT/G

Seven of the Eagles' unprotected players come on the offensive side of the ball. One of the decisions made was to make both QBs expected to battle for a roster spot, Tanner McKee and Dorian Thompson-Robinson, unprotected. If one gets taken, it will bring them down to three QBs with Jalen Hurts and rookie Kyle McCord, which is just one less decision the Eagles would have to make when cutting their roster down to 53. The other notable addition here was Matt Pryor, who has the flexibility to play guard and tackle. And although he wasn't with the team last year, he knows the team's blocking scheme well, having started his career with the Eagles in 2019 and 2020.

Defensive unprotected players

• Ben VanSumeren, LB/FB
• Patrick Johnson, Edge
• K.J. Henry, Edge
• Lewis Cine, S
• Parry Nickerson, CB

The final five of the Eagles' unprotected players come on the defensive side of the ball. The most notable addition is CB Parry Nickerson. He has the chance to compete for the primary backup slot CB job in training camp this year. If he were to be taken in this hypothetical expansion draft, it would set up Mac McWilliams' chances to make the 53-man roster nearly a lock, without much competition to backup Cooper DeJean.