NFL Draft: Dillard selected by Eagles in first round

Washington State left tackle Andre Dillard was selected in the first round and No. 22 overall by the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFL Draft Thursday evening.

Dillard is the first Cougar taken in the first round since safety Deone Bucannon went No. 27 overall to the Arizona Cardinals in the 2014 NFL Draft and is the highest Cougar picked since cornerback Marcus Trufant went No. 11 to the Seattle Seahawks in 2003.

"I was feeling every emotion in the book. I was anxious, I had to keep standing up," Dillard told ESPN afterwards. "It was such an amazing moment to share with everybody. I’m speechless right now.”

Dillard is the 13th first-round pick in program history and the first Cougar offensive lineman selected in the first round.

After losing backup quarterback Nick Foles in free agency, the Eagles made protecting current starting QB Carson Wentz a high priority.

"There is less room for error with the Philadelphia Eagles since Nick Foles, their 'break glass in case of emergency guy,' is gone," NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah said. "They have to keep Carson Wentz upright and keep him healthy. This assures you will see a smooth transition whenever Jason Peters slides away. This guy (Dillard) is going to plug right in and he'll take over right where Peters left off."

Washington State has now had an offensive lineman drafted in the three of the last four seasons, joining Joe Dahl (5th, Detroit) in 2016 and Cole Madison (5th, Green Bay) last season.

Dillard was a four-year letterwinner at WSU, appearing in 42 career games and starting the final 39 games of his career at left tackle. The two-time All-Pac-12 Conference selection earned All-America second-team honors from SI.com and third-team honors from the Associated Press as a senior in addition to being named to the All-Pac-12 First Team.

This past season, the Woodinville, Wash. native started all 13 games at left tackle, blocked for the nation’s top passing offense which also rushed for 24 touchdowns and Dillard anchored an offensive line that allowed just 13 sacks on 677 pass attempts. In 2018, Dillard was rated the third-best overall tackle in the country, the top pass-blocking tackle and second-best screen-blocking tackle in the country by ProFootballFocus College.