Eric Hartline-Imagn Images
Aug 28, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Cincinnati Bengals offensive tackle Brian Parker II (62) blocks Philadelphia Eagles defensive tackle Uar Bernard (93) at Lincoln Financial Field.
It’s not every day that you have to draft a potential superstar defensive tackle in the seventh round of the NFL Draft. But that’s exactly what the Philadelphia Eagles did when they used the 251st pick of the 2026 draft on Uar Bernard.
Bernard wasn’t a star in college. He didn’t even play college football. In fact, Bernard had never played organized football before joing the Eagles.
However, his testing numbers were undeniable. The 6-foot-5, 306-pound Nigeria native has a 39-inch standing vertical and a 10-foot-10-inch broad jump. He ran a 4.63-second 40-yard dash, including a jaw-dropping 1.60 10-yard split.
Those numbers make Bernard not just a special athlete, but an entirely unique one.
Uar Bernard’s RAS score is insane. With numbers like this, I’d be shocked if he isn’t selected in the 2026 NFL Draft https://t.co/wvf0YSDfuX pic.twitter.com/jDjTrJGtKY
— Bobby Football (@Rob__Paul) April 3, 2026
And Philadelphia has a history of teaching raw, athletic prospects how to become great football players. Pro Bowl left tackle Jordan Mailata was a seventh-round pick in 2018 out of Australia. Like Bernard, he’d never played organized football before.
Bernard impressed in limited preseason action. Though it was often easy to spot the areas of his game that need coaching and refinement.
Uar Bernard pressure in 2nd ever football game pic.twitter.com/QWBDMSRBQB
— Football Performances (@NFLPerformances) August 23, 2026
So, why is it that when the Eagles announced their final round of roster cuts this week, Bernard found himself on the outside looking in?
Eagles GM Howie Roseman Says Uar Bernard Is No Jordan Mailata
“I think that Jordan, with all due respect to (fellow international prospect) Joshua (Weru) and Uar — I don’t know, whoever’s the youngest person in this room probably could be doing this for 30, 40 years, and nobody’s going to see a Jordan Mailata ever again,” Roseman told members of the media on Monday. “I mean the person, the player that that guy is, that story, it’s an unbelievable story.
“[Mailata] had just a unique combination of size, strength, athleticism and pro experience as an athlete. I think sometimes we forget Uar has never played organized sports before. It’s a different bar. I think if we’re just judging everyone through the lens of Jordan Mailata, it’s going to be hard to give these guys a fair chance.”
But make no mistake, the Eagles and Roseman aren’t giving up on Bernard or fellow the aforementioned Josh Weru. Both were signed to the team’s practice squad, and could well have promising careers in front of them.
“Still very excited about them, really glad that they did get through [waivers],” Roseman said. “Certainly wasn’t certain about that, but I’m glad they’re back here.
“… But from our perspective, development is real. These guys have tremendous ability to be developed. They want to be developed. They have tools in their body, they’ve got great character, but it’s new to them.”
Perhaps Bernard never takes to football despite his physical attributes. But he does, the rest of the NFL will be kicking themselves for letting him fall into the hands of Philadelphia.