Eli Stowers' Rapid Development From QB To Tight End Lands Him With Eagles

PHILADELPHIA – Eli Stowers thought he was going to be a quarterback. Actually, he was a quarterback. Until a shoulder injury ended that dream while at Texas A&M. A torn labrum that required surgery altered his mechanics.

"I couldn't throw the ball the same after the shoulder surgery," said Stowers on a Zoom call shortly after the Eagles selected him in the second round of the NFL draft on Friday night.

He ended up at New Mexico State: "Just trying to start somewhere fresh. I was competing for the starting job there."

He didn't win it. Instead of packing it in, Stowers leaned into the adversity. He went into his offensive coordinator's office and said, ‘Coach, I'm willing to do anything to help the team. I know I have the ability to play offense, defense, and special teams. I don't care. I just want to get on the field. I know I can help the team.'

The OC suggested he give tight end a try. It fit like a glove. He has played the position for just three years, but in final season at Vanderbilt, he was named the John Mackey Award winner, given to the nation's top tight end.

Kenyon Sadiq, who was drafted No. 16 overall by the New York Jets on Thursday, didn't win it. Stowers did. In just his third year playing the position. The Eagles certainly noticed. They drafted him 54th overall on Friday night.

GM And Coach Had No Doubt Who They Were Taking In Second Round

"As we got closer to 54, it felt like it was really apparent who we were gonna pick at that spot," said general manager Howie Roseman. "It really stood out to us where Eli was. We didn't go into today saying that was the only guy we wanted, because there were a lot of good players there, but when you look at those guys and spending time with Makai (Lemon, the team's first-round pick) and his family (Friday), and just seeing their unique ability to impact the passing game. The kind of players they can be for this team going forward, it's exciting."

Stowers, who also won the William V. Campbell Trophy, which is more commonly known as the Academic Heisman, led Vandy with 62 catches for 769 yards and four touchdowns in 12 games.

"Athletically, he does some things that nobody else can do, and just to be able to create mismatches with him on third downs and first and second down situations, he is a tough cover," said head coach Nick Sirianni. "He catches everything, good after the catch, speed, quickness, so really excited to have him. … I think it's exciting that he's only played the position for a short time, and so with guys like that, we've done a ton of homework on the guy. Great character guy, high football IQ."

Stowers will be added to a tight end room where Dallas Goedert remains the lead dog, with free-agent signing Johnny Mundt and Grant Calcaterra also in there with some others.

"Dallas is actually one of the guys I used to watch on film a lot, just to learn at the tight end position," said Stowers. "Like I said, tight end is a new position to me still. So, the last few years, I've been trying to soak up as much film as I can and learn … Being able to learn from him and Johnny, too, I'm just so excited to be around them and be able to help me in my career."

Stowers' upside is…well, who knows? You have to figure he has plenty of room to grow. That growth will need to start with his blocking. To get better at that, he will need to add some bulk to his 239-pound frame, spread over a frame that nearly reaches 6-feet, 4-inches.

"Ultimately, moving to another position, pretty much everything is new to me," he said. "There are some things that came a little more naturally to me, just being an athlete, but really every single part of the tight end game is something that I'm trying to get better at. Whether it was natural, whether it wasn't, I want to continue to get better at my game, continue to grow and be the best I can be."

This article was originally published on www.si.com/nfl/eagles/onsi as Eli Stowers' Rapid Development From QB To Tight End Lands Him With Eagles.

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This story was originally published April 25, 2026 at 10:00 AM.