Philadelphia Eagles 2009 Breakdown: Defense

(Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)

Continuing the breakdown from yesterday, let’s take a look at how the defense shakes out as we head into the 2009 season.

Check out the offensive breakdown here.

Position: Defensive End

Starters: Juqua Parker and Trent Cole

Backups: Victor Abiamiri, Chris Clemons, Darren Howard, Bryan Smith

Pros: There is a lot of depth, as all five of these guys will play and can play. That helps limit injuries and keeps all of them fresher as the season goes on and the opposing offensive lineman wear down.

Cons: Besides Cole, no one guy can really stay on the field for all three downs. Plus, you always run the risk of having disgruntled players with this many guys splitting time on the field at one position.

Verdict: But having five quality guys at such an important position? Yea, you’ll take that.

Position: Defensive Tackle

Starters: Mike Patterson and Brodrick Bunkley

Backups: Dan Klecko, Trevor Laws, Amon Gordon

Pros: Patterson and Bunkley are a great one-two punch inside. In addition, Howard can often shift inside on third-downs, which gives you another guy on the field who can get to the quarterback.

Cons: Neither Patterson or Bunkley, and especially a backup like Klecko, are particularly big. And that’s really what you like seeing inside—a big fat guy who takes up space and can’t be moved.

Verdict: On the whole, this is another pretty solid area for the Eagles. You’d like to see more depth, though.

Position: Strong Side Linebacker

Starter: Chris Gocong

Backup: Tank Daniels

Pros: Gocong improved as the year went on.  He doesn’t do anything too dumb on the field.

Cons: He’s not what you would call a "playmaker."

Verdict: The Eagles don’t invest in linebackers. We all know this by now.

Position: Middle Linebacker

Starter: Stewart Bradley

Backup: Joe Mays

Pros: Like Gocong, Bradley got better as the year went on. He also had 108 tackles last year, which is no easy task.

Cons: He forced a grand total of two turnovers, was not around the ball enough, and miserably failed the look test when he was drafted and that stuck with me.

Verdict: Eh, you can live with him. But it would be nice, just for once, to bring in a game-changing MLB here.

Position: Weak Side Linebacker

Starter: Akeem Jordan

Backup: Omar Gaither 

Pros:

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