PHILADELPHIA, P.A. — Rookie Keyshawn James-Newby doesn’t have to look very far to see the success a seventh-round draft pick can make. All the Eagles' outside linebacker needs to do is walk a few stalls deeper into the locker room where Moro Ojomo stows his gear.
Further toward the back of the locker room is another former seventh-rounder—left tackle Jordan Mailata from 2018, who is already on his third contract with the Eagles. Ojomo was a seventh-round pick in 2023 and is playing himself into a second contract that should pay him handsomely, either back in Philly or in another city.
The Eagles have had some recent success mining talent in the final round of the draft, and James-Newby could be the latest to emerge. There could also be some success stories in waiting, considering the Eagles drafted two others in the seventh round last spring – defensive tackle Uar Bernard and safety Cole Wisniewski, both of whom were taken earlier in the round ahead of James-Newby.
“Whether you're first or seventh or a free agent, everyone has odds to beat,” James-Newby said at his locker earlier this week. “It doesn't really matter where you're at, you know? Everyone has odds to beat. … I can't look in the future, I can't look in the past, and I just gotta continue forward and take it day by day.”
The Eagles didn’t have seventh-round picks in 2022, 2024 or 2025. In 2021, they selected Patrick Johnson, who played 58 games with two starts in five years in Philly. He is still in the league, playing a big special teams role for the Raiders.
James-Newby—who is 6'1", 240 lbs—burst onto the scene last week against the Panthers after being elevated from the practice squad for the first time this year. He played 48 snaps (61%) on defense and 24 more (83%) on special teams, earning praise from both the defensive and special teams coordinators.
Keyshawn James-Newby showing signs of things to come
It was a huge jump for James-Newby, as it was after he was released at the end of training camp. General manager Howie Roseman said he was concerned that his seventh-round pick would be claimed, but James-Newby wasn’t and was added back to the practice squad.
“It's kind of a credit to him being a rookie, first time really playing in a big game, and I thought he did a solid job, and he's going to keep getting better and better the more times he's able to go out there and do it,” said ST coordinator Michael Clay. “I thought he did a fairly good job for us being that first time, and there's always things to improve on.”
Added defensive coordinator Vic Fangio: “He’s a pretty good athlete. He's got some speed to him. I think he'll even do better now that he's got his feet wet more than he expected, or we expected. I do like him, and I think hopefully we'll see steady progress from him the more he gets to play.”
James-Newby made only one tackle but showed enough in other areas to earn another elevation, or even a roster spot, as the Eagles prepare to host the Cowboys on Monday Night Football.
James-Newby played more than he probably expected after Nolan Smith left last week’s game with a concussion. The outside linebacker was in concussion protocol to start the week.
“Keyshawn has never once, no matter the circumstance, gotten down on himself,” outside linebacker Jalyx Hunt said. “You can tell some things frustrate him, but it doesn't change the fact that he's coming back out. He's gonna go 100 miles an hour whenever he can. He's gonna ask questions when he doesn't know something, and he's gonna work to be the best at what he can do.”
KJN spent time at three different colleges: Montana Tech, Idaho, and New Mexico, where he spent his final season before the draft. At New Mexico, he made 15 tackles for loss with nine sacks.
He understands that the NFL is a different level, and there are things he needs to do to become the next Ojomo or Mailata.
“I wouldn't say necessarily work on,” James-Newby said. “I would just say get better at some specific moves. I only have a couple of moves, and those moves are the moves I always like to use, and I always will continue to use. I just have to become more accurate with them, and it'll work out in my favor.”
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