April 15, 2001 | by Ron Reid | Inquirer Staff Writer

In a pleasing departure from a dubious tradition, the Eagles have graced their last three NFL drafts with intelligent decisions that have improved the team's talent.

It would be premature to say that Tom Modrak, the team's director of football operations, and head coach Andy Reid are 100 percent on target, but it is obvious that Philadelphia no longer is the franchise that routinely blows its first-round selection.

It now remains for the Eagles to pull off that most difficult achievement - mining an athletic gem from the late rounds of this year's draft, which takes place next weekend. In the 64 years the Eagles have been drafting players, they have barely managed to do that 10 times, as the following list indicates.

• The 10 smartest draft choices in Eagles history,
  all but one taken after the fifth round:
  
  
• The 10 worst draft choices in Eagles history,
  all but one taken in the first round:

It might also be noted that on occasion, the Eagles have discovered talent
outside the draft.

Andre Waters, a strong safety from Cheyney State who never got a mention in
the 1984 draft, signed on with the Birds as a rookie free agent and played
10 seasons in Philadelphia and two more at Arizona. He led the Eagles in
tackles four times and made the all-NFC first team in 1991.

Similarly undrafted, Herman Edwards played eight seasons with the Eagles and
engineered the most memorable play in team history, against the Giants on
Nov. 19, 1978. That was the day Edwards scooped up Joe Pisarcik's fumble and
raced 26 yards for the game-winning touchdown in The Miracle of the
Meadowlands.

No No. 1 ever had better timing.