The third day of the NFL draft typically sees less hype and discussion than the first two days, but one late-round pick is drawing comparisons to Victor Wembanyama.
With their seventh round pick, the Philadelphia Eagles drafted defensive tackle Uar Bernard, an athletic freak out of Nigeria who has never played a snap of American football.
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At 6’4″ and 306 pounds with only 6% body fat, Bernard is a freak of nature that tested extremely well during the pre-draft process. He ran a blistering 4.63 in the 40-yard dash and recorded a stunning 39″ vertical jump.
At the HBCU showcase that Bernard took part in, one coach expressed awe at his physical abilities.
“It’s like watching (Victor Wembanyama),” quarterback coach George Whitfield told Feldman. “The numbers don’t even do him justice. He’s 6-5, 310, and he’s got 6 percent body fat on him. NBA players don’t have 6 percent body fat on them.”
A human being over 300 pounds should not be able to move like that, but Bernard does. Despite no prior football experience, his otherworldly athleticism was enough for the Eagles to select the 21-year-old.
“We wanted to take the chance on the kid. Obviously, he has a lot of tools in his body,” Eagles GM Howie Roseman said. “We understand it’s going to take time. It’s going to take a lot of time here. But it’s pretty cool. We spend a lot of time talking about unusual and certainly unusual with that guy.”
Bernard got a chance for more exposure through the International Player Pathway program, designed to identify elite athletes from around the world and give them an opportunity to train and try to reach the NFL.
The Eagles have taken advantage of this program before, selecting Australian rugby player Jordan Mailata in the seventh round of the 2018 draft. Mailata proved to be a worthy investment, becoming one of the league’s premier left tackles.
Bernard said he looks up to Mailata, who’s still on the Eagles.
“The first day I met [Mailata], he told me that I should use my talents to bless my family,” Bernard said. “So I believe that what he told me coming through the IPP, going to the NFL as an international player, he is more like a role model to me, what he is doing now in the NFL.”
He said football isn’t nearly as popular in Nigeria, but that he’s honored to represent his country.
“It [means] a whole lot to me because I’m the first from my tribe to be at this level of NFL,” he said. “So more like an ambassador to the youth back home. And bearing the flag of Nigeria is a big task for me to work hard and set an example for the youth, for the young guys coming up from Nigeria.”
Bernard grew up playing soccer and basketball before his father passed away when Bernard was a teenager. He’s had to provide for his family ever since.
Eventually, a basketball coach asked him to look at American football and Bernard said he began watching some of the league’s top defensive players.
“I watched Myles Garrett and Aaron Donald,” Bernard said. “I love the way they play. Mostly Aaron Donald, I love his intensity towards the O-linemen. I love the way he crush the pocket and make his move to the quarterback. Myles Garrett, I love his athletic abilities to move around and make sacks.”
While he is still a raw prospect and it will take time for him to learn the fundamentals of skill work, Bernard’s athleticism is truly one-of-a-kind. If he continues to work hard and develop well, he could become a defensive menace on the football field.
James Parker is a sports writer for Ball Exclusives, follow him on X @TheJames_Parker
