With Connor Barwin Leading the Way, Eagles Defense Has Become a Force

The Philadelphia Eagles defense is shocking the football world, and it's hard to put a finger on how exactly the Eagles are doing it. 

This is a unit that made only minor changes after finishing dead last against the pass while posting the league's lowest sack rate in 2013, and they're now working without their defensive quarterback, DeMeco Ryans. And yet defensive coordinator Bill Davis has his guys tearing it up.

After a dominant five-takeaway, nine-sack outing against the Carolina Panthers Monday night, Philly now ranks in the top 10 in terms of takeaways and points allowed per game. And it now has 29 sacks since Week 4, which is the largest total in the league by a wide margin. 

Team	Sacks	Yards on sacks
1. Philadelphia Eagles	29	218
2. Buffalo Bills	26	132
3. Minnesota Vikings	23	120
4. Baltimore Ravens	23	188
5. Indianapolis Colts	19	105

In fact, Philly has more sacks in the last six weeks than it did in its previous 12 games, dating back to last October. They had more sacks in the first half Monday night than during the first three games of the season. 

And while the reemergence of outside linebacker Trent Cole and big performances of late from young front-seven defenders Mychal Kendricks, Brandon Graham and Fletcher Cox have factored in, veteran pass-rusher Connor Barwin is on the hottest streak of all. 

Barwin has more sacks in the last six weeks than he had in his previous 43 regular-season and playoff games, dating back to when he was a member of the Houston Texans in 2011. 

Player	Sacks
1. Connor Barwin	10.5
2. Marcell Dareus	9.0
2. Justin Houston	9.0
4. Elvis Dumervil	8.5

Barwin was given credit for 3.5 of Philadelphia's nine sacks on Monday, abusing guard Aminiasi Silatolu in the second quarter...

And right tackle Nate Chandler in the third quarter...

Not only that, but Barwin is one of only six players with four sacks on first down this season. He's also been crushing quarterbacks on third down, but it always says a lot about a pass-rusher when he can get consistent pressure on non-obvious passing downs. 

Speaking of pressure, it's not just about sacks. Barwin also has 16 hurries and six quarterback hits this season, which is why Pro Football Focus (subscription required) ranks him second among qualifying 3-4 outside linebackers with a pass-rushing productivity rating of 13.6. 

He's also one of only five linebackers around the league with zero missed tackles on at least 200 defensive snaps, per PFF. 

Barwin, who only just turned 28, is one of several success stories handpicked by head coach Chip Kelly and his staff early in that regime's first offseason. The 2009 second-round pick was left by many for dead after an ankle injury squashed virtually his entire sophomore season and after he was forced to move from defensive end to outside linebacker under Wade Phillips in 2011. 

He had some good moments during those final two years with the Texans, but it was no surprise Houston was cool with the idea of seeing him walk after he posted only three sacks and was graded 30th by PFF among 34 players at that position in 2012.

But Kelly and Davis saw something in him, which is why they gave the Cincinnati product a six-year, $36 million contract. 

He made an impact as a starter in 2013, but Barwin also was stuck in coverage for 42 percent of his defensive snaps. That number has shrunk this year, and it's paying off huge for both the linebacker and his Eagles. 

Really makes you realize that just like Kelly's offense, his defense has been built to withstand the loss of its quarterback. 

Brad Gagnon has covered the NFC East for Bleacher Report since 2012.

Follow @Brad_Gagnon