It’s been ten days since veteran defensive end Chris Long decided to close the curtains on an incredible career, both on and off the field. The Eagles also lost Michael Bennett this offseason and a very valid question being asked by many has been ‘have the Eagles done enough to replace them?’
I explored this in an article last week, detailing production, snap-counts and the players who will be expected to step up.
To summarize, the Eagles lost over 15 sacks, 15 quarterback hits, and double-digit tackles for loss, from a pair of players who between them, were on the field for 1,328 snaps last year. But when asked about the losses of two highly impactful veterans who meant so much to the team, Jim Schwartz responded calmly with reasoning that nobody had really considered before.
“I think it’s business as usual for us. From our first year here, the next year we lost Connor Barwin and that was a big loss. A lot of leadership and a lot of pass production.
And then after the Super Bowl, talked about losing a guy like Vinny. So change in the NFL is nothing new. There is a challenge every year trying to replace certain production, so it’s nothing new. We’ll miss those guys. They were important parts of what we did, Chris for two years, Michael for one.
That’s just life in the NFL. You’ll have some roster turnover and you have to deal with it. I like some of the additions we have had. We have some younger players moving into some of those roles. Even a young draft pick like [DE] Shareef [Miller] has done some good things for us over the last couple weeks.”
– Jim Schwartz talking at Eagles OTA’s on May 28th.
He’s not wrong. In 2016, Connor Barwin played in 69% of defensive snaps. He recorded 5 sacks that year, while Vinny Curry struggled to put the icing on the cake, leading to a big platform to step onto one year later. Of course, to replace the fan favorite, the Birds drafted Derek Barnett in the first round.
Schwartz was right about losing Curry as well. The defensive end landed in Tampa Bay after his refusal to take a pay-cut left the Birds’ with little in the way of options. They had to let him walk in order to swim against the ‘Super Bowl spike’ that they were bound to experience.
Curry played in 55% of defensive snaps during the team’s Super Bowl run, amassing 3 sacks and a career-high 42 tackles. Those numbers, for a variety of reasons, weren’t reached in Tampa Bay…but now Curry, a native of PA, is back home. He told reporters after Tuesday’s OTA practice that his lone season in Tampa Bay just felt like an ‘extended offseason’. He’s not the only one excited by the return, either.
“I would even start and [DE] Vinny Curry, getting him back.” Schwartz said when asked about the offseason additions to his defense. “He really looks like he hasn’t missed a beat from where he was when he last played a game for us, which was in Minnesota.”
Jim Schwartz
So, why does all of this matter? Naturally, there’s a lot of speculation over what will happen at defensive end this offseason. The Eagles drafted Shareef Miller in the fourth round, but the rookie has a raw skill set and will need to add some pass-rushing moves to his arsenal before he starts climbing up the depth chart.
Then, there are names like Josh Sweat and Joe Ostman, who the coaching staff are high on for different reasons, coinciding with Curry’s return. Let’s not forget that Brandon Graham was also finally given an extension this offseason, perhaps a hint that the team do believe he can produce as a starting edge rusher while the next of kin produce.
Schwartz has steadily started to rely on the third defensive end in his rotation during his time as defensive coordinator and the Eagles have a flurry of unproven rotational pieces at their disposal. Some are younger than others, some are more experienced than others. But in three years of the ‘wide-nine’ scheme, there has been plenty of turnover at the position. Again, this isn’t something that worries Schwartz.
It hasn’t been as heavily talked about until this offseason’s roster turnover, but I think that’s down to an incredible job from the front office to keep the conveyor belt moving and replenish talent as it passes through. This scenario was quietly different and will hit a little heavier, but if Jim Schwartz is simply ready to shrug off the concerns about the loss in talent and production, then maybe the only way to look is forward after all.
Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
