Victor Abiamiri signed his first NFL contract Sunday when he and the Eagles agreed to terms on a four year deal after Philadelphia drafted him in the second round of April’s NFL Draft. As the Philly Inquirer reported:
Abiamiri, a second-round pick from Notre Dame, and Ilaoa, a seventh-round pick out of Hawaii, received four-year deals. Abiamiri will report to camp competing for playing time at defensive end, where the Eagles have five other players with significant NFL experience: Jevon Kearse, Darren Howard, Trent Cole, Juqua Thomas and Jerome McDougle. Abiamiri’s arrival could make it difficult for McDougle, a former first-round pick, to make the roster.
The Eagles love drafting defensive linemen – they spent first round picks on defensive tackles in 2005 and 2006 (Mike Patterson and Broderick Bunkley) – mainly because defensive coordinator Jim Johnson is a big proponent of using a lot of defensive linemen during a game. Abiamiri should see the field as a rookie if he shows something in camp despite the Eagles depth at the position because of Johnson’s philosophy. At worst he should be the 5th DE in for the Eagles as it is widely speculated that McDougle is all but gone.
I plan on making a couple trips to Eagles training camp this summer and will update his progress with the Birds.
