Eagles take Uar Bernard at No. 251
- The Philadelphia Eagles used the No. 251 pick in the seventh round of the 2026 National Football League Draft on Uar Bernard, a Nigerian defensive tackle from the International Player Pathway program. - Bernard has never played organized football, but he measured 6-foot-4 and 306 pounds, ran a 4.63-second 40-yard dash, and posted a 39-inch vertical at the March showcase. - The pick extends Philadelphia’s history of betting on international projects after Jordan Mailata, another Pathway prospect, became a starter. (philadelphiaeagles.com)
The Eagles used the No. 251 pick on Uar Bernard, a Nigerian defensive tackle who has never played organized football. (philadelphiaeagles.com) (nfl.com) Philadelphia made the selection in the seventh round of the 2026 National Football League Draft after acquiring the pick from the Los Angeles Rams. Bernard entered the league through the International Player Pathway program. (nfl.com) (usatoday.com) The Eagles list Bernard at 6-foot-4 and 306 pounds with six percent body fat. At the March HBCU Showcase and International Player Pathway Pro Day, he ran a 4.63-second 40-yard dash and posted a 39-inch vertical jump. (philadelphiaeagles.com) Bernard’s path to the draft started in Nigeria, where he was first spotted playing basketball as a teenager. Former National Football League defensive end Osi Umenyiora invited him to the 2024 National Football League Nigeria camp. (philadelphiaeagles.com) He then worked at football camps in Africa for three years before joining the 2026 International Player Pathway class. Philadelphia used that same program in 2018 to draft Jordan Mailata, who arrived from Australia without football experience. (philadelphiaeagles.com) (bleedinggreennation.com) Bernard said after the pick that being drafted by Philadelphia was “a dream come true” after years of work without game experience. The Eagles are adding him as a long-range defensive line project, not as a player expected to help immediately in 2026. (philadelphiaeagles.com) (si.com) That makes the pick less about college production than traits. Bernard’s testing numbers and size give Philadelphia a rare athlete to develop at defensive tackle if its coaching staff can teach him the basics of the position. (philadelphiaeagles.com) (ras.football) The comparison hanging over the selection is Mailata, because the Eagles already turned one international novice into a starting lineman. Bernard is a different player at a different position, but the bet is familiar: take unusual size and movement late, then see if time can do the rest. (philadelphiaeagles.com) (bleedinggreennation.com)
