Eagles Can Bring Brotherly Love To LIfe In Draft

Josiah is a 6-2, 237-pound sideline-to-sideline thumper, a player who can tackle, someone who can blitz and harass a quarterback from multiple angles.  And, in a draft filled with 24- and 25-year-olds, he is just 20.

“Just being 20 years old, I feel like I’m very mature for my age,” Trotter told reporters at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis on Wednesday. “I have high upside. Being 20 years old, I feel like my best ball is ahead of me. Coming in really young and having people ahead of me like my brother and my dad, who helped me along the way, through college and into the NFL. So, I feel like I have high upside, being that I’m 20 years old, coming to the NFL. Just more years ahead of me for a lot of ball."

The linebackers will work out on Thursday at 3 p.m., and will be televised by NFL Network. Linebacker probably isn’t a priority for the Eagles, but Trotter may cause them to rethink that position. If Trotter is still on the board in the third round, maybe they rescue his fall, as the Eagles did with Dean when he slid to the third round in the 2022 draft.

Linebackers still matter greatly in Vic Fangio’s scheme. The defensive coordinator contemplated retirement this offseason, so returning in 2027 may not happen, so who knows if the next DC would value linebackers?

There would certainly be a room full of them, even if Dean parts. There’s Trotter, Zack Baun, Jihaad Campbell, Smael Mondon, and highly-regarded Chance Campbell, who was signed to a futures contract the day after the Eagles’ season ended.

Josiah Trotter may be the best of the Trotters, though is father set a high bar during his 11-year NFL career, which includes eight seasons with the Eagles. He was a four-time Pro Bowler and two-time All-Pro, though Trotter, Sr., is best remembered for swinging an air axe in celebration of a sack of big play. Jeremiah copied that celebration in Super Bowl LIX, when he made a play in the win over the Kansas City Chiefs.

“It was really cool, to see him do it in the Super Bowl,” said Josiah. “That meant a lot to me, and obviously my dad. He was really happy and proud of (Jeremiah Jr). It meant a lot to my dad. He loves seeing us do it all the time. That’s probably his favorite part, obviously.”

In the final days of the regular season, Jeremiah Trotter was asked about the possibility of playing with his younger brother.

“Who wouldn’t want to play with his brother,” he said.

Added Josiah: “It’s definitely a conversation, something we talk about. But like we say, wherever I end up, I end up. It would be a cool experience to go there, but it would be great to go anywhere.”