It’s been a rollercoaster of a week for the Philadelphia Eagles. The city was silenced at the news that Carson Wentz was out for the season with a torn ACL. The MVP candidate’s league-leading 33 touchdown passes that set a new franchise record were suddenly frozen, leaving the Eagles to put their offense in the hands of Nick Foles.
With Wentz out for the year, a roster spot opened up. Would the Eagles fill that vacancy with a backup quarterback? Perhaps some experienced help in case Nick Foles were to go down with injury? Or maybe, the team would seek extra depth along the trenches? The result was surprising, but it was the best decision to make. A familiar face returns to Philadelphia in the way of Bryan Braman.
Braman carved a very valuable niche role in the Eagles locker room before the team opted to let him test free agency waters. The former undrafted rookie ended up in New Orleans, before being placed on injured reserve prior to the start of the regular season. Every cloud has a silver lining however as Braman returns to familiar territory.
In 2014, Braman played in a whopping 81% of special teams snaps. One year later, he played in 69%. In 2016, he led the Eagles as the player with the most special teams snaps on the entire roster.
After some explosive moments under Chip Kelly and a relatively thin DE position, some expected Braman to thrive in a scheme that fits his ruthless persona. Unfortunately, those opportunities were few and far between last year. But on special teams, Braman was a demon. Whether it was coming within inches of blocking a Giants field goal, or storming down the field to hold opposing teams to 18.7 yards per kickoff return, the 2nd lowest in the league, Braman was a force to be reckoned with. We all remember that violent sack on Drew Bree’s in 2015, the preseason suplex of Bryan Bennett and his performance against the Seahawks one year ago. The decision to bring him back, was a no-brainer.
“It just means we needed to add some special teams help.” Doug Pederson said. “We have had some starters start to take some roles on special teams, and we know Bryan and he knows us. It’s a great opportunity to get him and bring him back to the team. And [also to] give our starters, give some of the guys like [LB] Nigel Bradham and [LB Mychal] Kendricks, give them a break on special teams because they are getting so many reps on defense that this was a good opportunity at this time to [clean] that end of it up”
The Eagles have an influx of depth at defensive end. Steven Means for instance has only seen just 1.7% of the Eagle defensive snaps. Brandon Graham, Vinny Curry, Chris Long and rookie star Derek Barnett have fueled the unit with depth and production. While Braman may not be an instant contributor on defense, he plays a role just as important.
Winter Football is approaching. As returns bobble, players slip and slide, temperatures drop, and long-snapping becomes more difficult, the Eagles need all the help they can get to boost a high-scoring offense and relentless defense. Braman may have been one of the most effective special teamers the Eagles have had in recent memory and while Fipp’s unit has again been outstanding this year, there have been a few lapses.
Easing the pressure off of Kendricks and Bradham as the Eagles eek to save the tred on the tires for the playoffs, Bryan Braman may be one of the most underrated signings of the season…and his impact will only grow as the postseason draws nearer.
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Philadelphia Eagles Carson Wentz Jersey
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