Setting Realistic Expectations for Eagles' Jalyx Hunt This Season

When the Philadelphia Eagles drafted Jalyx Hunt in the third round, many analysts and fans were surprised by the move. Not that the team addressed the edge defense - the trade of Haason Reddick opened a hole the organization needed to fill.

No, the surprise came from Hunt himself.

USA Today

Hunt originally began his college career at Cornell University before transferring to Houston Christian University. In his final season in the Southland Conference, Hunt led the SLC in tackles for loss (11.5), forced fumbles (3), tied for second in the league in sacks (7), and was ninth in the conference in tackles (87).

The Southland Conference is far different than the NFL, though.

The 23-year-old has had a quiet start to his career with the Eagles, but that doesn't mean he'll be a bad player at all down the stretch as his career progresses.

In reality, a strong comparison to the type of career the Eagles are hoping Hunt can have is like teammate Josh Sweat. The former FSU product came to the Eagles as a project of sorts (like Hunt) and didn't record a sack in his first season. He put forth four the following year and increased his total for the first five seasons.

If Philadelphia can get that kind of career trajectory out of Hunt, then the organization can be set up nicely for the coming years.