Philadelphia Eagles Suddenly Counting on Rookie LB Jordan Hicks

Nobody was quite sure exactly why the Philadelphia Eagles needed all three of Mychal Kendricks, DeMeco Ryans and Kiko Alonso at interior linebacker. Observers were even more confused when the team turned around and invested a third-round pick in Jordan Hicks as well.

Yet all of a sudden, Hicks found himself playing a key role in Week 2 against the Dallas Cowboys when Kendricks and Alonso left the game with injuries. And based on what's happening at that position, not to mention the rookie's impressive performance, the Eagles could be relying on him a lot more in 2015 than we ever imagined.

FOX 29's Howard Eskin reported that Kendricks will try to go against the New York Jets on Sunday despite suffering a hamstring injury. Ryans, meanwhile, is "healthy" but looks like a 31-year-old who's less than 11 months removed from surgery to repair a torn Achilles.

Perhaps the biggest blow of all for the unit is the loss of Alonso for an unknown duration of time—possibly the season—with a partially torn ACL, according to Les Bowen of the Philadelphia Daily News.

GM	TKL	SK	INT/PD	FF
Wk 1 @ ATL	0	0	0/0	0
Wk 2 v. DAL	7	1.0	0/0	1

With Alonso out for a weeks at minimum and Ryans' being a situational player at best at this stage of his career, Hicks can expect to see more action going forward. The Eagles also have Brad Jones, primarily a special teams contributor, and re-signed Najee Goode, who spent training camp and the previous two seasons with the club, on Tuesday, as reported by CSN Philly's Andy Schwartz.

Hicks may be the best option to join the rotation on the interior, regardless of the alternatives, as the 23-year-old didn't look completely out of place when he was thrust into the game against the Cowboys.

In his NFL debut on defense, Hicks finished tied for second on the team with seven tackles, all of them solo. More importantly, he didn't miss any. Hicks was also credited with a sack and a forced fumble on Tony Romo that was recovered by the Eagles—and while the quarterback seemed to drop the ball unprovoked, it was the linebacker's pressure that forced him to panic.

The one area where Hicks struggled somewhat was in coverage. Tight end Jason Witten gave the University of Texas product a bit of a free education, although the matchup featured a 10-time Pro Bowler versus a first-time player. Hicks also lost running back Lance Dunbar deep down the field on a wheel route that went for a 39-yard gain. Based on charting by Pro Football Focus, he was targeted three times for three completions and 54 yards total.

Rich Schultz/Getty Images

However, the good definitely outweighed the bad, especially considering the circumstances. Hicks wasn't expected to contribute much this season, if at all, and certainly not so soon. The next thing you know, he's on the field during a pivotal game in an NFC East rivalry.

"I thought Jordan did a nice job, especially in that situation, when two guys go down," Eagles head coach Chip Kelly said after the game. "He's primarily a special teams player for us, but when you only dress four guys on game day, you have to be ready to go. Besides that one pass play to [Dunbar], I thought he did a nice job."

Selected 84th overall in May, Hicks is 6'1" and 236 pounds. At the combine, he finished second among all linebackers in the three-cone drill (6.78 seconds) and the 60-yard shuttle (11.34), and tied for fifth in the vertical jump (38.0 inches), according to NFL.com. He also clocked in at 4.68 seconds in the 40-yard dash and performed 20 reps in the bench press.

Hicks' senior season with the Longhorns was his most promising, as he racked up 116 tackles—13.0 for a loss—5.5 sacks, two interceptions and two pass breakups in 13 games. He battled injuries in the two years prior.

YR	TKL/TFL	SK	INT/PD	FF
2010	21/1.0	1.0	0/0	0
2011	50/3.5	1.0	0/3	0
2012	18/2.5	0.0	0/1	0
2013	43/2.5	0.0	0/0	0
2014	116/13.0	3.5	2/2	0

There was a sense that Hicks might've been a bit of a reach in the third round, particularly for the Eagles, who had less depth at other areas. However, Kelly was very high on the player, describing him as a "three-down linebacker" to reporters via the team website in May.

"He was our highest-rated guy by far," Kelly said at the time. "We had him rated in the second round.

"He's the player we had seen the most and just felt like [he’s] got a great skill set. He's a three‑down linebacker, can cover, is an outstanding special teams player and to be able to bring him in here and learn from DeMeco and Mychal and Kiko, [I] just thought there's great value in that pick."

Fortunately for the Eagles, it appears they don't have to rely on Hicks becoming a three-down linebacker yet, especially if Alonso eventually returns. However, we're about to find out just how much value he brings to the table as a rookie.

But one game in, he's held his own.

Unattributed quotes were obtained firsthand.