Eli Stowers Becomes Dallas Goedert Replacement for the Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles selected Vanderbilt TE Eli Stowers in the second round with the 54th pick of the 2026 NFL Draft. A four-star QB recruit in the 2021 class, Stowers made the move to TE at New Mexico State in 2023. He finished that year with a 35-366-2 receiving line before transferring to Vanderbilt. Stowers immediately emerged as the Commodores’ top target, leading the team with 49 catches, 638 yards, and 5 TDs in 2024. Stowers was even better this past year, posting a 62-769-4 line and winning the Mackey Award as the top TE in college football. His 2.55 yards per route ranked second among 99 FBS TEs with 30+ targets. Stowers looks like an excellent athlete on tape and confirmed that with a 9.42 Relative Athletic Score at the Combine, highlighted by a 4.51-second 40 time and 45.5-inch vertical. The question with Stowers is how he’ll fit in an NFL offense. He’s light at 6’4, 239 pounds and struggles to hold up as a blocker. He played just 38% of his snaps inline over the past two seasons. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport even said in the leadup to the draft that some teams were evaluating Stowers as a WR. It’s also worth noting that Stowers has suffered a pair of significant injuries:
- Torn PCL and meniscus in his left knee in 2019
- Torn labrum in his shoulder in 2021
