You’ll be hard-pressed to find a team who enjoyed an offseason as successful as the Eagles. Ticking every box on their shopping list, Philadelphia smartly navigated some treacherous salary cap waters to sustain a level of talent across the roster that has playoff potential written all over it. But while stars like DeSean Jackson and Jordan Howard will steal the spotlight, the one move that has slipped so far under the radar may turn out to be their most impactful.
The problem:
Defensive tackle was a prominent need from the moment the Eagles’ playoff run came to a close. Fletcher Cox posted a career-high in sacks, but did so without much in the way of a supporting cast. Michael Bennett played a huge role as someone that could line up at the 3-tech spot and take some of the weight off his shoulders, but outside of that, depth was minimal.
There were flashes from Treyvon Hester, but names like Bruce Hector and Destiny Vaeao just weren’t able to provide enough push and as a result were rotated around and shifted up and down, all throughout the season. Without Timmy Jernigan there to shoulder the burden and decimate the run-game, the defensive line struggled to support their franchise defensive tackle, who had to put the whole unit on his back at times while depth dissipated around him.
In 2017, Beau Allen and Destiny Vaeao combined to play in over 60% of snaps and that was with a healthy Timmy Jernigan in the fray. Cox had to stay on the field for 59% of defensive snaps. That number in 2017? 58.9%.
The solution:
The Eagles worked wonders in bringing Malik Jackson to town as someone who could effectively fill the niche Michael Bennett left behind, as well as playing a prominent interior role. Then, just one day before the NFL Draft kicked off, Timmy Jernigan was signed to a one-year deal. Jernigan wasn’t too pleased, threatening to pull a Telvin Smith, potentially in relation to what will almost certainly be a drop in playing time. But even then, that still leaves the Eagles with 3 defensive tackles.
On day 3 of the NFL Draft, the Eagles traded a seventh-round pick to the Indianapolis Colts in exchange for Hassan Ridgeway, a defensive tackle the team had been high on prior to the 2016 draft. The move almost seemed too good to be true.
The Birds’ had received that seventh-round selection earlier in the draft following a trade with the Patriots. That landed Philly the 167th and the 246th pick, while the Pats took a punter with the newly acquired 163. Each to their own.
So with a pick they didn’t have going into the draft, the Eagles decided to play a different card in trading for a defensive tackle who already has quite the resume.
The upside:
The 24-year old was originally a fourth-round selection back in 2016 and since then, has played in 34 games (starting 6), notching 41 tackles, 6 TFL, 4.5 sacks and one pass defensed. In 2018, he only played in 6% of snaps, tallying 6 tackles. But he appeared in five games that year and also had 3 tackles, 1 TFL and 0.5 sacks in the Colts short playoff run.
Seventh-round selections rarely make an instant impact. Rotational roles are often the immediate ceiling at defensive tackle, but the Eagles already have Treyvon Hester and Bruce Hector, who were seventh-round selections and undrafted respectively. Instead, the Eagles traded for a player who is still extremely young at 24-years old and has a strong upside and 34 games of experience.
Ridgeway stands to make close to $1M next year, the final year of his rookie deal (Did someone say prove-it contract?). Cheap, cheerful, and ready to go and secure himself a bag, the potential for Ridgeway to come in and play a significant role is high.
The real potential of this move comes down to development though. Ridgeway was drafted into a 3-4 scheme originally, but the 6’3, 305 lbs, was never really a space-eating mauler. Ridgeway’s athleticism lends itself to being a more efficient pass-rusher, as evidenced by his preseason traction where he amassed 4 sacks in 2 games. It’s not like this was new, either. Ridgeway has 17.5 career sacks as a Texas Longhorn before being drafted in the fourth-round.
Now this isn’t to say that overnight, Ridgeway is going to develop into a monster that will suddenly take over the defensive tackle position. But the Eagles need to find a solid rotation of 4/5 tackles and with experience and youth still on his side, as well as now playing in a scheme that fits very snugly with his physical makeup, it would hardly be surprising to see Ridgeway really establish himself as a reliable option given the players currently competing for that role.
In a best-case scenario, Ridgeway really steps up and maximizes his time on the field after a strong preseason, providing great value and depth to the Eagles roster. A worst case scenario? He doesn’t make the roster and the Eagles cut…what is effectively, a seventh-round pick. This move is the very definition of low-risk, high-reward.
