Should the Eagles sign Hard Knocks star Riley Bullough?
With Jordan Hicks lost for the season, should the Philadelphia Eagles look to a former Hard Knocks star to bolster their depth at middle linebacker?
Over the last decade, HBO subscribers have been treated to an inside look at NFL training camps through the award-winning show Hard Knocks, and one of last season’s breakout stars was undrafted linebacker, Riley Bullough.
Bullough, a fullback at Michigan State before switching to the defensive side of the ball, made a name for himself on the show by being an incredibly vocal and passionate leader on the field, and for looking like Joe Dirt off it. After showing potential during the preseason, Bullough ultimately didn’t make the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ 53-man roster, with the team instead choosing to sign the young linebacker to their practice squad.
But why should this matter to Philadelphia Eagles fans?
Well, after losing defensive signal caller Jordan Hicks for the season with an Achilles’ injury, the team could use some serious help at linebacker if they want to keep their playoff dreams alive, and Bullough could fit that need perfectly. With Nigel Bradham likely replacing Hicks as the defensive signal caller, Jim Schwartz will have to decide between deploying Joe Walker, Najee Good, Kamu Grieger-Hill or Nathan Gerry as the team’s third linebacker in their base defense, with no surefire starter among the group.
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While it’s unlikely that Bullough could step into the Eagles starting lineup immediately like say, Navarro Bowman, DeAndre Levy or Rey Maualuga would, he could help to bolster their depth considerably, and arguably be the team’s best true developmental linebacker.
Of the Eagles’ current linebacking core, only former seventh-round pick Walker has taken a snap at the middle linebacker position, with the other three players logging the vast majority of their snaps on special teams, so the team could do a lot worse than using Hick’s vacant roster spot on a young middle linebacker prospect.
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Even though Bullough is a bit undersized to play linebacker in Schwartz’s defense, the young ex-Spartan has the leadership and coverage skills desired in a wide-nine Mike, and could eventually fill out into a quality player.