The Eagles Have Had the Opportunity to Improve at Linebacker
Pound for pound, the linebacker position on the Philadelphia Eagles is by far the poorest on the roster.
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Time and time again Howie Roseman has failed to address the middle of the defense, and the Eagles are currently being exposed for it. A recent report by Adam Caplan suggests that there is a disconnect between defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz and Howie Roseman.
The report reveals that Schwartz desired to draft Kenneth Murray in the first round, but Roseman elected to draft a Wide Receiver in Jalen Reagor instead with the 21st overall pick. Murray was taken two picks later (23 overall) by the Los Angeles Chargers who actually traded back into the first round in order to acquire him. Currently, Murray has 38 tackles (20 solo) which rank second-best on the Chargers.
The Eagles also had the opportunity to draft another Linebacker in the first round before selecting Reagor. Patrick Queen fell to the Baltimore Ravens with the 28th overall selection.
So far, Queen has been the standout Linebacker from the 2020 draft class.
Queen will not be the only Raven’s Linebacker the Eagles could have on their roster…
L.J Fort signed with the Philadelphia Eagles on a three-year $5.5 million deal but was cut after just four games. Since being released and picked up by Baltimore, Fort has 54 tackles, two sacks, two fumble recoveries, and a touchdown.
The Eagles have not had consistency at the Linebacker position since Mychal Kendricks, who was not re-signed by the team after their 2017 Super Bowl season. In six seasons with the Birds, Kendricks racked up 548 tackles alongside 14 sacks. Kendricks was also exceptional in coverage, which is something this current linebacking core is not. Sure Alex Singleton was able to register a pick-six against the San Francisco 49ers…but the football was thrown directly to him.
The Eagles linebackers have been a liability in coverage thus far. Philadelphia lost last week’s game against the Pittsburg Steelers due to an absolute mismatch at the linebacker decision.
Having Nate Gerry of all people guard Chase Claypool on a crucial third down with three minutes left in the game is beyond me…
It’s going to be a long season for the Linebackers of the Birds.
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Categorized:Eagles