Philadelphia Eagles: A case for Mychal Kendricks

Turns out, keeping Mychal Kendricks worked out well for the Philadelphia Eagles this season.

Without question, the defense of the Philadelphia Eagles has been stellar this season, and is one of the main reasons why this team in one win away from earning a trip to Minnesota for Super Bowl 52..

Ending the regular season first in rush defense, the unit’s primary strength arguably lies in the defensive line, where studs like Fletcher Cox and Brandon Graham have haunted opposing quarterbacks and clogged running lanes all season.

Cox and Graham were expected to be in Philly and to provide significant impact for this Eagles defense this season. Conversely, Eagles linebacker Mychal Kendricks was no guarantee to suit up for Philadelphia this season when looking at the situation around this time last year. According to an article by ESPN staff writer Tim McManus, Kendricks requested a trade out of Philly last offseason, which he obviously wasn’t granted.

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Therefore, Kendricks ended up staying on the Birds roster, and in the wake of these rumors, the 27-year-old from the University of California actually had a solid regular season for Philadelphia.

Tough times

The Eagles linebackers have faced some adversity this season. Linebacker and young star Jordan Hicks injured his Achilles back in Week 6. Joe Walker slid onto IR as the season waned. Also, a little unfamiliarity was sprinkled in as Philly signed veteran linebacker Danelle Ellerbe late in the regular season.

With the Eagles linebackers facing struggles, the secondary out-gunning expectations and the defensive line dominating national attention, Kendricks has flown under the radar this season for the most part, even though he shouldn’t have.

By the numbers

Kendricks finished second on the team with 77 tackles this season, which was 45 tackles more than his 2016 season, according to the team’s site.

Granted, several circumstances can contribute to such a drastic difference in tackles. Nonetheless, the former second-round pick was able to brush all these off and be a solid contributor on a 13-3 playoff team now on the cusp of an NFC championship. That in itself is an accomplishment worthy of a longer look.

In addition, Pro Football Focus recognized Kendricks as one of the highest graded players in the Divisional Round. Even the eye test confirms Kendricks plays with a speed and athleticism that certainly has a spot on any NFL roster.

Numbers off the field are just as important. Financially, I believe Kendricks is worth keeping around for the long run.

According to Spotrac.com, Kendricks will cost the Eagles $7.6 million against the cap next season. If he were to not be on the roster before June 1, his dead cap would be $3.2 million. That’s a decent chunk of change with it being the 14th highest potential cap hit on the team.

Eating that extra $4.4 million may be worth it, considering playing next to Kendricks will be guys coming off injuries (Hicks and Walker) along with an aging Ellerbe.

Kendricks is also approaching the end of his contract, and will be an unrestricted free agent in 2020. Plus, if the Eagles were to hold onto Kendricks for 2018, his dead cap for 2019 would only be $1.6 million, a $7 million savings in cap if it was clear the Eagles and Kendricks were ready to part ways (for real this time).

For the culture

The Eagles’ defense has harvested its own swagger this season. As collective as a Cha-Cha Slide and as individualized as a finger wag, the Eagles’ defensive celebrations have magnified their beaming personalities.

Even though Kendricks faced uncertainty behind his Eagles future this past offseason, he hasn’t appeared to alienate himself from the team. As a matter of fact, Kendricks seems to have fully bought into the Eagles this season.

As proof, Kendricks made a post on his Instagram live upon the media’s entrance into the victorious Eagles locker room, shown in this Reddit link.

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Kendricks says, “Oh, we got media coming in, they wanna talk to us!” This is followed by similar phrases echoing disdain at the media’s tendencies, presumably also said by Kendricks.

Kendricks, in his exclamation, makes it clear the line between us (the Eagles) and them (the media). In other words, he is embracing his locker room, a professional act to undertake after having his Philly career in limbo just last year.

Granted, winning can cure all ills. Even if that were the sole reasoning behind Kendricks’ attitude, it’s proof he is putting the team’s success above himself. And with Kendricks facing his brother Eric Kendricks and the Minnesota Vikings with a trip to the Super Bowl on the line, the linebacker has another opportunity to prove himself worthy of being a member of this team.