Philadelphia Eagles: Larry Warford could help to replace Brandon Brooks

Larry Warford has to be the Philadelphia Eagles’ top option to replace Brandon Brooks.

Brandon Brooks was about as close to irreplaceable as any player on the Philadelphia Eagles‘ roster.

Sure, sure, he’s just a guard, and doesn’t have as obvious of an impact on any given game as, say, Carson Wentz, Darius Slay, or even his linemates Jason Kelce and Lane Johnson, but Brooks is also one of the best players in the entire NFL regardless of position. Since signing with the team in 2016 – a move that was mildly controversial at the time (more on that here) – Brooks has been an absolute stud, recording an average value of 8.5 according to Pro Football Reference, while only three sacks on 4199 regular-season snaps.

Brooks has also only allowed nine penalties over that time period, if you care about that sort of thing.

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So when news broke on Monday that Brooks will all but certainly miss the entirety of the 2020 NFL season with a torn Achilles, it royally suc… stunk. Not only will Brooks not be on the field, which in and of itself turns a massive strength into the offense’s biggest hole, but with free agency and the draft over, the Eagles don’t really have that many options to find a suitable replacement moving forward.

Say what you will about the Eagles’ quartet of second unit reserves – Matt Pryor, Jack Driscoll, Prince Tega Wanogho, and Nate Herbig – but there’s a reason why that trio has combined for 79 total snaps in the NFL – they just aren’t ready for prime time action.

Fortunately, there’s actually a player on the open market who can not only slot into Brooks’ spot on the outside, but do so at a Pro Bowl-level: Larry Warford.

Now as you may or may not know, Warford is not the best fit in the Eagles’ scheme (more on that here). He’s not a particularly good athlete, is more of a pass blocker than a puller in the run game, and has exclusively played on the right side. If Brooks wasn’t injured, there would be virtually no reason to sign Warford, especially for his presumed $8-10 million price tag.

Brooks, however, is injured, and that changes everything.

In Warford, the Eagles could potentially have another Pro Bowl guard who was drafted by Jim Schwartz in 2013, is at worst a bad fit in Doug Pederson’s run game and a minor downgrade in the pass game from Brooks’ trademark dominance. Is that worth investing a sizeable chunk of the team’s remaining salary cap? Is a soon to be 29-year-old guard really that much better than Dirskal and/or Pryor?

Short answer: Yes. Long(er) answer: Oh my goodness yes.

If the Eagles could secure Warford on a one-year deal for, like $10 million, they should. Even if they have to overpay a tad more due to the nature of signing a one year deal, securing the seventh-year vet’s services in 2020 has to be priority number one over anyone on the open or trade market, even Jason Peters.

Wait, wait, wait, what if Jason Peters plays right guar… yeah, Warford is the guy.

Now I know the Eagles really, really want to roll as much of their 2020 salary cap space into 2021 as they can, going so far as to effectively take themselves out of the Devonta Freeman sweepstakes, but saving the season has to take priority over everything else.

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Despite being released by the New Orleans Saints a little over a month ago, Larry Warford is somehow still a free agent. Yesterday, that really didn’t matter to the Philadelphia Eagles, but after watching one of their cornerstone players fall to a season-ending injury, this free agency oversight now looks like a glorious consolation prize from the football gods.

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