8 Philadelphia Eagles Who Could Make Their 1st Pro Bowl in 2015

It's the middle of summer, and the Philadelphia Eagles are just weeks away from opening training camp. You know what that means: only about six more months until the Pro Bowl!

OK, so we're not exactly looking forward to the NFL's trivial all-star game at this point in the offseason. That being said, we are imagining which Eagles could find themselves mired in the festivities come January, in particular which players could make it for the first time.

Guys like left tackle Jason Peters get voted in every year, so that's not very exciting. Let's talk about the players for whom wearing leis on the gridiron is an original concept—the ones for whom reaching the Pro Bowl would actually be something new.

In the Eagles' case, that's actually quite a few players—eight by our count. Are we missing anybody? You be the judge.

Sam Bradford

Matt Rourke/Associated Press

Don't get too hung up on his numbers with the St. Louis Rams. If Sam Bradford could only manage to stay healthy, he has an excellent shot at making his first Pro Bowl as a member of the Eagles.

Bradford has never been surrounded by as many weapons as he has now in Philadelphia. The sixth-year veteran has never enjoyed the type of protection he'll receive from the Birds' offensive line. He's never played for an offensive-minded head coach like Chip Kelly, either.

Nearly every player who's been through Kelly's offense the past two seasons has gone on to post a career year. Why would a talent like Bradford—once the No. 1 pick in the 2010 draft—be any different?

Look no further than Nick Foles' historic 2013 campaign as an example of the kind of numbers a quarterback can produce in Kelly's system. Foles set an NFL record with 27 touchdowns to just two interceptions and would eventually go on to be named Most Valuable Player of the Pro Bowl that year.

Bradford's road to Honolulu could be assisted by other signal-callers dropping out, be it injuries or because they're playing in the Super Bowl. With roughly 1-3 odds of getting the invite, Bradford is an excellent bet to sneak in—as long as he can stay upright.

Jordan Matthews

Kathy Willens/Associated Press

Jordan Matthews' impressive rookie season was sort of lost in the shuffle among the incredible wide receiver class of 2014. He was one of four with at least 800 yards and eight touchdowns.

Of course, when you consider the fact that only nine active wideouts have produced at least 800 yards and eight touchdowns in their rookie season, you begin to realize just what an achievement that is.

Plus, Matthews did it while lining up almost exclusively as the Eagles slot receiver. That means he wasn't on the field for every play, whereas a lot of his rookie competition probably was.

That shouldn't be the case for Matthews in 2015. With Pro Bowl receiver Jeremy Maclin fleeing Philadelphia in free agency to join the Kansas City Chiefs, the second-round pick out of Vanderbilt figures to play an even more prominent role in the Birds offense this season as the club's leading returning receiver.

Seeing as the No. 1 receiver in Kelly's offense has produced at least 1,300 yards and nine touchdowns in each of the past two seasons, a Pro Bowl is not out of the question for Matthews this year.

Zach Ertz

Matt Rourke/Associated Press

The buzz around Philadelphia was 2014 could be Zach Ertz's breakout season, but the tight end's sophomore campaign didn't quite live up the hype. That being said, there's a strong sentiment that Ertz could still join the ranks of the elite in Year 3.

As Jeff McLane for the Philadelphia Inquirer wrote, Ertz spent the offseason enlisting the help of some of the NFL's all-time greats, including Tony Gonzalez, the most productive tight end in history. Kelly believes Ertz might be in store for more in '15 as well, telling McLane "a big jump" is a possibility this season.

It's not as if the 24-year-old hasn't been impressive. He was one of only 11 tight ends with at least 50 receptions and 700 yards last season.

The question is whether he can take the next step toward stardom. At 6'5", 250 pounds with 4.7 speed and excellent route-running ability, Ertz is a matchup nightmare for defenses. The biggest issue right now is he's stuck in a timeshare with Brent Celek, but if Ertz improves his blocking to the point where he warrants more playing time, Pro Bowl production could follow.

Lane Johnson

Ross D. Franklin/Associated Press

How valuable is Lane Johnson to the Eagles? Consider this: In 2014, All-Pro running back LeSean McCoy averaged 2.8 yards per carry while the right tackle was serving a four-game suspension. Upon Johnson's return, McCoy's average doubled to 4.7 in the month of October—with Pro Bowl linemen Evan Mathis and Jason Kelce still out due to injuries.

Johnson is easily overshadowed on a star-studded offensive line, but the fact of the matter is the third-year player has the potential to be special. He's already an elite run-blocker, and he's above average in pass protection as well.

For what it's worth, Johnson earned the 13th-highest cumulative score of all offensive tackles from Pro Football Focus last season. It seems the 2013 fourth overall draft pick is well on his way to gaining the reputation that one needs to earn a Pro Bowl bid at the position.

If it doesn't come this year, it's certainly in his future. Eventually, Johnson will be called upon to replace Jason Peters at left tackle, which is the side Pro Bowlers traditionally come from. However, despite lining up at the opposite end, Johnson may be good enough to buck the trend.

Fletcher Cox

Chris Szagola/Associated Press

Listen, everybody knows Fletcher Cox was robbed of an invitation last year. You don't show up on virtually every underrated player list that comes out during the course of a single offseason and not deserve to be there. Heck, Cox even managed to garner second-team All-Pro honors in 2014, so obviously somebody must've been paying attention.

Coach Kelly certainly thought Cox deserved to be there, describing his defensive end as the Eagles' most valuable player, among other high honors, per the team web site.

"I think he's been our top player," Kelly said. "He's been really unblockable at times. I think he's a very disruptive force. But sometimes you make the Pro Bowl, I guess, on reputation."

Cox only registered four sacks last season, which no doubt hurt his chances but in no way does his body of work justice. The fact is ends in 3-4 schemes don't always have the huge sack totals, but watching the film, there are few linemen who take over games the way he does. At only 24 years of age, it seems a near certainty Cox's recognition will come soon enough—perhaps even in 2015.

Brandon Graham

Michael Perez/Associated Press

Brandon Graham has been waiting for this opportunity for six years. Now that it's finally here, don't be surprised if he rides this wave all the way to Hawaii.

A first-round pick in 2010, this season will be Graham's first as a full-time starter. And while ordinarily it would be wise to hold off on crowning any player before he's proven himself, the outside linebacker's body of work suggests he could be headed for double-digit sacks.

According to Pro Football Focus, Graham has been one of the NFL's best pass-rushers for three years running. Using their pass-rushing productivity metric—a formula that combines sacks, hits and hurries per pass-rushing attempts—Graham has ranked first, seventh and first at his position over the past three seasons.

Or, look at it this way. Trent Cole managed 17 sacks in 2,549 snaps since 2012. Over the same time frame, Graham recorded 14 sacks in 1,312 snaps.

Graham is Cole's replacement, and he's been outplaying the two-time Pro Bowler for a while it seems. With this new-found opportunity, it may be only a matter of time until Graham is making a name for himself among the league's most dangerous sack artists.

Kiko Alonso

Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

Kiko Alonso is a football magnet. Yes, he's only actually played in one NFL season, but it was a doozy. The 2013 second-round pick finished third in the NFL with 159 tackles to go along with two sacks, four interceptions and a forced fumble for the Buffalo Bills, a line that helped him earn Pro Football Writers of America's Defensive Rookie of the Year honors.

In a league increasingly filled with specialists, Alonso is a true three-down linebacker. He has the combination of size, athleticism and instincts to be a force against the run, as a pass-rusher and in coverage. That's what the Eagles traded All-Pro running back LeSean McCoy for—a shot at a game-changer.

First, Alonso must prove he's recovered from his second torn ACL. However, if healthy, he instantly becomes the best interior linebacker in Philadelphia, which is saying something of a group that includes DeMeco Ryans and Mychal Kendricks.

With a line anywhere near what he produced in '13, Alonso seems like a surefire Pro Bowler. And if it doesn't happen this season, don't worry, he only turns 25 in September—there's still plenty of time to make reservations in Honolulu.

Byron Maxwell

Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

Is Byron Maxwell going to be a legitimate No. 1 shutdown cornerback in the NFL? Or was he merely a product of an all-time great Seattle Seahawks defense and secondary?

That is a question that must inevitably be answered in 2014. That being said, if we're to go on the film, there's absolutely reason to believe Maxwell has Pro Bowl potential all by himself.

Look no further than when the Seahawks met the Dallas Cowboys in Week 6 last season. Maxwell spent much of the first half of that game (before exiting with an injury) covering All-Pro wideout Dez Bryant. And how did the corner fare? He was targeted four times in coverage, allowing one reception for 11 yards.

Maxwell ran stride for stride with one of the NFL's most dominant receivers for much of the afternoon, on an island all by himself no less. That's good news considering Bryant and some of the league's best such as DeSean Jackson and Odell Beckham Jr. happen to play in the same division.

Maxwell only has 17 career starts under his belt entering this season, but the tape is impressive. If he can handle playing in the NFC East, he'll absolutely deserve consideration for the Pro Bowl in 2015.