The Philadelphia Eagles need to bring Haason Reddick home
The Philadelphia Eagles need help on the defensive side of the ball.
Another season going by, and the Philadelphia Eagles are decimated again by injuries.
The roster has seen significant injuries on both sides of the ball. From relying on third-string linemen and pass catchers on offense, to throwing late draft picks into the fire, this season has been a disaster so far for the Eagles, leading to their 1-4-1 record heading into Week 7.
As bad as this season has gone so far, there is still a potential playoff run to be made, and this season can be salvaged.
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Position groups will get healthier. The offense is starting to clique and should see players return around the bye week. For now, it will be Carson Wentz and the kids running the show for the Eagles offense.
With all of that said, there is still one position group that raises concern: linebacker. After not investing enough in the offseason, the linebacker position has been atrocious for the Eagles.
Through the first six weeks of the season, the group’s best player has been Alex Singleton, an undrafted free agent who finally survived roster cuts this year. T.J. Edwards was a starter at the beginning of the year but is currently on IR with a hamstring injury. Duke Riley and Nate Gerry are other original starters but have been very underwhelming this year. The Eagles drafted Davion Taylor and Shaun Bradley in this year’s draft but didn’t get meaningful snaps until last week against the Baltimore Ravens.
So, how do the Eagles salvage this group of players they call linebackers?
They go out and buy.
The trade market for linebackers isn’t huge right now, though there has been hypothetical talk around Avery Williamson of the New York Jets and potential discussion with Zach Cunningham of the Houston Texans.
Both good players, but there is one player that the Philadelphia Eagles should have on their radar: Haason Reddick.
The fourth-year linebacker for the Arizona Cardinals should be a target for the Eagles moving forward. Previously a 2017 first-round draft pick and taken one spot before the Eagles, Reddick is in the last year of his rookie contract and is already in a crowded linebacker room.
Making a move now for Reddick does make sense for the Eagles, as it could be a deal where they don’t give up a lot to bring in a much-improved linebacker. Reddick transitioned to outside linebacker in 2020 and currently leads the Cardinals with four sacks on the year.
Although he’s the leading sack leader, Reddick only plays an average of 52 percent of the Cardinals’ defensive snaps and could play a big role in both pass defense and as an off-ball defender. While occasional using Reddick as a blitzer would be a great changeup to throw off the quarterback, but he has the speed and athleticism to close in on an opposing pass catcher and make a play on the ball. Plays like this are what the Eagles desperately need from the linebacker position. Their current players are not getting it done, and either a change or spark is needed from that group.
The hypothetical talk around this deal has already begun, as there have been mock-up trades created between the two teams.
Bringing in Reddick would also be a great story for all parties involved, as he is a Camdon New Jersey native and Temple alum. Bringing him home to play for his home team would be an amazing story.
One thing must be noted if the team does pursue a trade of Reddick: this can’t be a rental move. If a trade for Reddick does happen, he needs to be here beyond the 2020 season.
Reddick is still very young at 26 and can provide an impact for the Eagles for years to come. A Reddick trade cannot turn into another Golden Tate situation, where they gave up high draft capital for a player that was only on the team for half of a season.
Howie Roseman needs to be smart as we approach the trade deadline. He cannot have history repeat itself and give up important assets for rental players.
Next. Should the Philadelphia Eagles trade for Bengals WR John Ross?. dark
If the Philadelphia Eagles decide to go after Haason Reddick, not only does he have to be a factor this season, but also several seasons to come.