Eagles' Eric Rowe meets the media

New Eagles DB Eric Rowe

On whether he is a better fit at cornerback or safety:

“I’m comfortable at both positions. If I had a preference, I would say corner[back].”

On whether Eagles head coach Chip Kelly told him that he was going to start out at cornerback:

“No, he was just congratulating me and is just waiting until I get out there to see him.”

On whether he got the impression that the Eagles wanted him to play a certain position after meeting with them:

“[It was] more of an impression to play corner, but to know [how to play] both positions.”

On why Utah moved him from safety to cornerback in his final year:

“This past season, we had a corner [get drafted] in the fourth round to the Raiders. He had a lot of success because he was another tall, long cornerback so they wanted that again. That, plus a whole new class of safeties was coming in the next year, so it allowed me to move out there.”

On how he would describe himself as a cornerback:

“A physical, press competitor. I love to hit, I love to come on the blitz and tackle. On the press man, I love to take charges on the line of scrimmage. I would say I’m an aggressive corner.”

On whom he would compare himself to in the NFL right now:

“I do like to watch film on [Jets CB Darrelle] Revis and [Browns CB] Joe Haden and how patient they are at the line of scrimmage.”

On what his meetings were like with the Eagles during the pre-draft process:

“Really, it was just like [my meetings] with every other team. I talked to the coaches, I talked to the position coach, but nothing too big. When I got out there, I felt like there was a real strong interest from [the Eagles]. They really liked me. I’m glad they chose me because I really liked them, too.”

On why he prefers corner over safety:

“I feel like I have more growth there. I only had one year experience [at cornerback] and I felt like I did a lot of good there. With more learning and practice, I feel like I’ll get better.”

On whether it was a surprise to him when he got moved to corner:

“No, it wasn’t a big surprise because I kept hearing rumors about it and the coaches were telling me they were thinking about it. When they said, ‘We want you here’ it wasn’t a big shock to me.”

On how he is in terms of locating the ball in the air:

“I feel like I’m very good at locating the ball in the air – I whip my head around, track it. I don’t know how to answer that question.”

On some of the skills he uses that make him so effective:

“When I’m playing man, usually the receiver’s eyes get big and you can kind of tell when the ball is coming, so I know when to time my head and whip it around. Usually the receivers, they’ll tell you everything. When they’re not getting the ball, they’re just running, but when the ball is coming, their eyes get big. You can see more of an urgency from them and that’s when I can tell. I whip my head around and I know the ball is coming.”

On what stood out to him about USC WR Nelson Agholor when Utah played USC this past season:

“His quickness. His quickness, his explosion, he’s shifty and he’s crafty. He wasn’t very big, but it was hard to get a hand on him. I think he was probably the best receiver I went up against in the Pac-12.”

On how he faired against him:

“I think I did well [against him]. I didn’t match up one-on-one against him because I was at safety that game, but seeing him run around, he was very good.”

On whether it was coach Kelly and his staff that really attracted him to the Eagles:

“I was only there for half a day and I felt like their culture was different. They were doing things a different way that was positive. I felt like they did things a different way and it kind of took me by interest and I was like, ‘Man, I want to join this kind of culture and team.’”

On how they did things differently:

“It was just the feeling I got from them. I talked to the coaches and they were telling me what they do and their process compared to the other teams. It was a different feeling I had from them.”

On whether he expected to be drafted in the second round:

“Everybody wishes to be drafted higher, but at this point, it doesn’t even matter. I’m just glad I got picked.”

On what he would bring to a team if he were to play safety:

“If I were to play safety, I would bring – not saying that I don’t have it – a football IQ. I’m very good at schemes and reading offenses. I’m a real good run supporter, but I can also roam the backfield. I think I have pretty decent range and I have really good open field tackling skills. I can’t say that I’m the best because I don’t know [anything] about this level [yet], but in college I was really good at it.”

On how it feels to have a team trade up to draft him:

“It feels great. I feel like they really wanted me. I’m glad it was them because after I left my visit, I was like, ‘Man, I want to go here so bad’ but it’s not like college where I get to pick.”