How Eagles stud pass rusher Nolan Smith almost became a Kansas City Chief, except Howie Roseman was too smart

NEW ORLEANS — They’d come down to the wire in a three-point Super Bowl less than three months before, and they were down to the wire again. This time, however, the Eagles didn’t let the Chiefs beat them.

This time, it wasn’t coach vs. coach, or QB vs. QB.

It was GM vs. GM. Advantage, Birds.

Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie told a tale Monday night about how his resident personnel genius, Howie Roseman, stared down Chiefs general manager Brett Veach on draft night 2023. That’s the night the Eagles invested in their future with a late first-round pick named Nolan Smith. Fast-forward almost two years and Smith leads playoff participants with four sacks this postseason. His 6½ sacks ranked second on the Eagles in the regular season.

» READ MORE: How the inquisitive Nolan Smith grew to become the Eagles’ answer at edge rusher

Since the Chiefs won Super Bowl LVII they held the 31st overall pick in 2023 draft. It was the last pick of the first round, since Miami had forfeited its pick for tampering with quarterback Tom Brady and coach Sean Payton over the previous three years. The Eagles held No. 30, and they couldn’t believe their luck.

Earlier in the day, they had been able to trade up, from No. 10 to No. 9, where they landed Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter, the best defender in the draft. Not only that, but Carter’s dynamic teammate, Smith, was still on the board at No. 30. The Eagles needed an edge rusher to develop and eventually replace Brandon Graham, who would be 35 in 2023.

Then Veach called Howie Roseman to feel out a possible trade. Roseman smelled a rat.

“They were desperately trying to swap,” Lurie said Monday. “We kept saying, ‘Well, who are you going to select if we make this swap?’”

Silence.

“Brett wouldn’t tell us,” Lurie said.

Roseman tried another tack:

“Offensive side or defensive side?”

Again, silence.

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“If they said offensive side, maybe we would have made the swap,” Lurie said. “Because we knew who we were taking.”

Smith, at 6-foot-2 and 238 pounds, was a short-term project whom some prognosticators believed the Eagles would trade up and take in the top 10, if necessary. He’d torn his pectoral muscle, which ended his final season after eight games. That, combined with modest production his final two seasons — 6½ sacks in 22 games on two powerhouse defenses on two national title teams — cooled some teams on Smith’s NFL future.

The Eagles stayed hot.

They loved Smith. He had been the best athlete among edge rushers at the NFL scouting combine, where he ran a 4.39-second 40-yard dash. He was the perfect sort of Eagle.

And Chief.

“It became obvious,” Lurie said, “that we were targeting the same player.”

Smith was stunned and flattered that he’d almost been bound for KC, but was happy nonetheless.

“I didn’t know about that story. Man, that’s kind of cool,” Smith said. “But I really love Philly. I’m happy Philly drafted me. I’m up here in Philly for a reason. You know, everything happened for a reason. And you know, I thank God that I had this opportunity.”

So is defensive tackle Jordan Davis, a former Georgia teammate the Eagles picked in the first round the previous season.

“I feel like this was his fate,” Davis said. “I’m just grateful we’re here together.”

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The Chiefs had to settle for Felix Anudike-Uzomah, a more traditional defensive end out of Kansas State. Anudike-Uzomah has three sacks in two seasons, but he has played in all 34 regular-season games and in both playoff games this year.

And, of course, since the Chiefs won the big game last year, Anudike-Uzomah has a Super Bowl ring.