The 2007 Eagles defense was a top-10 unit. The offseason additions of Asante Samuel and Chris Clemons should only improve the defense’s ranking.
The 2007 defense that was very good could be dominant in 2008.
The defensive line boasts two young, promising tackles in Bunkley and Patterson. The ends are lead by Pro Bowler Trent Cole and free agent signee Chris Clemons. Together the two combined for 20.5 sacks in 2007.
The quality at the cornerback position is downright scary. Asante Samuel and Lito Sheppard (when healthy) are perennial Pro Bowlers. Sheldon Brown would be a No. 1 cornerback on most teams.
The return to health of future Hall of Famer Brian Dawkins should shore up a weak safety unit. Dawkins' leadership and game-changing ability should help make up for the deficiencies of the team’s other safeties.
The big question mark of the Eagles' defense are the linebackers. The linebackers will need to step up for the defense to achieve success in 2008. Can the linebackers deliver?
The first thing you notice about the Eagles' linebackers is the absence of a strong veteran leader. Gone are Jeremiah Trotter and even Takeo Spikes. The veteran of the group is now Rocky Boiman. Rocky who? The name does not bring forth much confidence.
Boiman leads the linebacking group with six years of NFL experience. Unfortunately Boiman brings a career high of only 54 tackles in a season. This is not of too much concern as Boiman is scheduled to be a back up this year. But if he is called upon, well then, it’s time to worry.
The projected starters at linebacker are Stewart Bradley, Omar Gaither, and Chris Gocong. Combined the starters have four years of NFL experience. Bradley, the starting middle linebacker, has one career start. That is not a typo, one career start.
An important reserve will be Akeem Jordan. Jordan too is short on experience, having only one year of NFL experience and one career start. The other reserves include Joe Mays, Justin Roland, and Andy Studebaker. Each player is a rookie, making their combined NFL experience zero years!
1 comments Last one added about 1 year ago — Leave a Comment
Chris Olley about 1 year ago
I'm not too worried about the linebackers. They're young, but they're mature. Omar Gaither is a bonafide starter who's excelled at two linebacker positions. Stewart Bradley really impressed me last year not just in the one start but in the rest of the playing time he received as well. He was only drafted in the 3rd round because of injury concerns - he was projected middle 1st round before the draft, and he really showed it last year. I think Chris Gocong's going to really break out this year too. He's got the size, speed, and he's smart. I'm looking for 100 tackles from Gocong.
I don't think Boiman would start even after an injury. I think that Akeem Jordan would get the start. He proved last year that while he's not exactly starter material, he deserves to play in the NFL. He could fill in for Gaither definitely at WILL. If Bradley got injured they could move Gaither back to middle and play Jordan at WILL. If Gocong got injured Bradley could play SAM Gaither could move back to MIKE and Jordan could play WILL. This is a very versatile unit which has many big plays in store this year. With Dawkins and Mikell behind them and arguably the best defensive line in front of them, this should be one of the nastiest defenses in the league this year. I'm very excited about this defense.
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