The new league year is almost upon us and the Eagles wasted little time in getting down to the nitty-gritty. Their first port of call was signing DTHassan Ridgeway to a new one-year deal.
The now-25-year old DT was originally a fourth-round selection back in 2016 but arguably into the wrong system in Indianapolis. 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.
The Eagles knew they needed depth at DT so instead of yet another late-round/UDFA selection, opted to bring in someone who has already flashed the traits they need at the NFL level.
In two weeks for the Eagles, Ridgeway played in 55 defensive snaps. 36% in week one and 47% in week 2, as well as a third of special teams opportunities. With Malik Jackson and Timmy Jernigan both suffering injuries, his role would increase and his production would follow suit.
With 2 sacks and 6 tackles in 3 weeks, Jackson was firing on all cylinders until the inevitable injury bug found its way to the bright young talent.
One week after the best game of his career as an Eagle, Hassan Ridgeway was placed on injured reserve. He notched 2 sacks, 4 QB hits, and 4 tackles for a loss in his short stint replacing the DT’s above him on the roster and flashed plenty of upside in the process.
Ridgeway is still young, is bound to be cheap and clearly has a lot of unharnessed potential. With a new Defensive Line coach in town and a total lack of depth, this move makes too much sense.
As of right now, the Eagles DT Depth chart actually seems to be reasonably solid:
DT1: Fletcher Cox
DT2: Malik Jackson
DT3 Hassan Ridgeway
DT4: Anthony Rush
That looks about as typical as the position has over the last few years, but it wouldn’t surprise me if they do seek to add young talent through the NFL Draft. However, this is probably a sign that Timmy Jernigan’s days as an Eagle have come to a heartbreaking end, with the Eagles moving on to Jackson and Ridgeway.
Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports
