Philadelphia – He is not an accident that the Eagles wrote two players at the end of the NFL draft whose fathers were NFL players and old first round choices.
And really, the path to the Eagles of Drew Kendall and Myles Hinton is similar in many ways, but also very different.
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Kendall, a center, was written in the fifth round, n ° 168 in total of the Boston College, while Hinton, a tackle, was taken in the sixth round, in the n ° 191 in total, of Michigan after having started his career in Stanford.
Kendall’s father, Pete, was a first round choice of the Seattle Seahawks In 1996, and spent 13 seasons in the NFL with five teams. Hinton’s father, Chris, was a first -round choice of the Foal In 1983, taken n ° 4 in total. He too had a 13 -year career and was selected at Pro Bowl seven times.
As a rule, late choices, especially on the offensive line, are considered to be projects that may or not work. The Eagles also selected the Texas Tackle Cameron Williams in the sixth round, n ° 207 in total.
The director general of Eagles, Howie Roseman, put on the heritage of Kendall and Hinton to give them a better chance of succeeding.
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“They have critical factors with which we can really work and develop,” said Roseman on April 26, when they were written. “And obviously, they have things to work on. This is why they were drafted where they were. But when you get guys with critical factors, with coaches we have, I will try our luck with this.”
As for Kendall (6 feet 4 inches, 308 pounds) and Hinton (6-7, 323), the main difference is that Kendall has good memories to stand on the touch of 7 years at the Fedex Field watching his father play for Washington late in his career.
Michigan Wolverines Hinton’s offensive line of Michigan Wolverines (78) Blocs in the first half against the Bulldogs of Fresno State in Michigan Stadium on August 31, 2024.
Hinton does not have this context. He was born well after his father’s retirement in 1995.
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Hinton said on May 2 when the Eagles had started a mini recruit that he had no idea that his father was as accomplished as him.
“I didn’t really know how good he was until the age of 13,” said Hinton laughing. “He didn’t talk much about it, but once I started to really enter football and play O-Line for real … It’s when I understood it, it was this guy.
“I started doing research on him, watching youtube videos on him and what no. It was crazy.”
Before that, Hinton said that his father spoke to him very little about his career. In fact, when Hinton was a child, he asked his father once why he had a big scar on his leg.
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“He said he was bitten by an alligator he was fighting,” said Hinton, laughing.
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It was not until later that Hinton learned that Chris Hinton broke his leg playing football and operated.
All this, said Hinton, was supposed to show that his father was not going to force him to play football. But once Hinton said he had discovered that it was what he wanted to do, his father helped him each time he was asked.
Hinton began his collegial career in Stanford before transferring to Michigan in 2023. He started five games for Wolverines this season en route to the national championship. Hinton became a full -time starter for Michigan last season.
The quarter-arre of the Eagles of Boston College Grayson James (14) and the offensive line player Drew Kendall (66), drafted by the Eagles in April 2025, in action during the match between the Mustangs SMU and the Boston College Eagles of Gerald J. Ford Stadium in December 2024
Kendall, on the other hand, emulated his father, saying that he had learned what it was necessary to be a pro.
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What was the greatest thing he learned from his father, who played 13 seasons and recorded 189 games (188 as a starter)?
“I would say taking care of your body,” said Kendall. “He played for 13 seasons. It did not happen by accident. He was a pro, taking care of his body, ensuring that he was ready to leave every Sunday and for each training. So, he remains at the top.”
But Kendall came another player more than his father from the legendary Eagles Jason Kelce center, who concluded a 13-year career in 2023 after being selected for 7 pro Bowls and 6 All-Pro teams.
“It was my favorite cassette to watch, my favorite center to watch,” Kendall said about Kelce. “So I am very familiar. He did incredible and incredible things here … I loved the way he pulled. He came out in space and really attacked the second level. He arrived at the second level very quickly and really highlighted the seconds.
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“In my lifetime, probably the most influential center that played in the National Football League.”
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Kendall knows it has a long way to go for the same success as Kelce. In fact, he could follow a similar path to the center that replaced Kelce in Cam Jurgens.
Jurgens moved to the right guard in 2023 and had the chance to play next to Kelce. Kendall said there was a question of also moving for the guard. The Eagles have an opening on the right, and there will be competition with Tyler Steen and Kenyon Green, for which the Eagles exchanged in March.
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After Kelce’s retreat, Jurgens, written in the second round in 2022, replaced it and was selected in Pro Bowl.
Kendall said he was a caretaker in high school before his coaches in Boston College moved him to the center. And Roseman was particularly efficient in the way Kendall picked it up.
“You are talking about someone who has just played in the NFL,” said Roseman about Kendall. “Obviously, his father was a choice of first round. It is difficult to find. It is a deficient league in the center. There are not many centers on the draft boards.
“It is not a natural line to break the ball, and therefore all offensive line players cannot do it.”
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Kendall has his father to thank for that, just as Hinton does with his father.
“He tested me hard,” said Hinton. “He told me about his career and how the coaches would lead him. He said you have to hold it.”
This could be the case with the coach of the offensive line of the Eagles Jeff Stoutland. We then asked Hinton if he sees similarities between his game and that of his father.
“Of course,” said Hinton. “It was super strong and explosive, and I am in the same way – there by mobilizing.”
Contact Martin Frank at [email protected]. Follow on x @mfranknfl. Read its cover of the season of the Eagles championships in “Flying High”, a new Coffee table book with rigid cover of Delaware Online / The News Journal. Details on fly.champsbook.com
This article originally appeared in Delaware News Journal: What the draft choices of the Eagles learned from the NFL Star Fathers, Jason Kelce
