Philadelphia Eagles: Anthony Walker is THE name to watch in free agency

The Philadelphia Eagles haven’t had an above-average linebacker on their roster since Jordan Hicks left town in the spring of 2019.

Is that an overgeneralization? Is that disrespectful to the names of Nathan Gerry, T.J. Edwards, and Nigel Bradham? Are ‘thems fighting words’? I mean hey, if you want to go to the mat for any of those players, I’m not going to stop you, but I think it’s fair.

Heck, one could argue that the two best linebackers employed by the Eagles since Hicks left town, Kamu Grugier-Hill and L.J. Fort, didn’t even get good until they left the confines of the City of Brotherly Love for the bright lights and water-adjacent stadiums of Miami and Baltimore respectfully.

There’s no doubt about it; the Eagles need to find a sure thing to help shore up the second line of their defensive front, even with Jim Schwartz reportedly being replaced by Nick Sirianni’s fellow Indianapolis-ian, Jonathan Gannon (more on him and his preferred secondary here).

But who could it be? Alex Singleton has proven himself a surprisingly talented player, but he’s more of a SAM linebacker who can’t be reliably counted on to play in the dime. What about Howie Roseman’s two linebacker selection in the 2020 NFL Draft, Davion Taylor and Shaun Bradley? Well, if – and that’s a big if – either of those players develop into an every-down linebacker, they too aren’t really three-down material, as they’d surely stick around on nickel downs but get pulled for a defensive back for a safety and/or cornerback.

No, what the Eagles need more than pretty much anything else is a surehanded middle linebacker who can play darn near 100 percent of the team’s defensive snaps, hold up against the pass as well as the run, and call plays as Gannon’s ear on the field.

Boy, if only there was a player set to hit the open market who checked all of those boxes and has experience in Gannon’s scheme…

Anthony Walker is the perfect leader for the Philadelphia Eagles’ new defense.

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When Anthony Walker was selected by Indianapolis Colts GM Chris Ballard with the 161st overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft, no one expected him to become a star.

Sure, the Colts obviously wanted him to be successful – every team wants every draft pick to become a Hall of Famer after all – but had the team really coveted the Northwestern linebacker all that highly, they likely would have picked him with one of their seven earlier picks.

Heck, Walker wasn’t even the first player the Colts selected in the fifth round, as they picked Temple cornerback Nate Hairston three picks earlier despite having already picked up a prototypical man-press cornerback, Quincy Wilson, in the second round.

Fun fact: The Colts moved on from both Hairston and Wilson in 2020 and the duo reunited on the New York Jets. Needless to say, neither is considered a marquee draft day steal.

Despite his meager draft pedigree – being the 14th inside linebacker taken in his class – Walker found near-immediate success when the Colts switched over to a 4-3 defense during his sophomore professional season – starting 14 of the 15 games he appeared in while recording 105 tackles, 11 passes defensed, a sack, and an interception. He played big alongside All-Pro weakside linebacker Darius Leonard in the middle of Matt Eberflus‘ defense and proved a calming force regardless of the players around him.

Is Walker a perfect prospect? No. He’s plenty athletic at 6-foot-1, 230 pounds with a 116-inch broad jump and a 4.65 40, but doesn’t hold a candle to the athletic freaks currently roaming the second level of defenses like Isaiah Simmons, Devin Bush, or Devin White. For what it’s worth, Walker also saw his playing time wane down the stretch in 2020, losing playing time to 2019 third-round pick Bobby Okereke in defensive sub-packages.

With that being said, Walker is a professional NFL middle linebacker, and after watching the motley crew of inside options the Eagles have trotted out in 2019 and 2020, he’s unquestionably the best option that team has employed since Jordan Hicks wore the number 58 in 2018.

I mean come on, this guy’s nickname at Northwestern was “The Franchise” for goodness’ sake, what better player to bring in to establish a new defensive identity?

Identifying Jonathan Gannon’s preferred secondary. dark. Next

As tough as it may be to admit, the Philadelphia Eagles are not going to be heavy players in free agency this spring. Sure, they can theoretically make a few small moves here and there and maybe even swing a bigger deal or two if it’s structured correctly, but as a general rule, fans will be saying goodbye to far more familiar faces than they’ll be welcoming back. With that in mind, Anthony Walker may be more valuable to the Eagles than any other free agent on the market, as he could be a paramount, cornerstone addition to their defensive front, and he should be pursued with the vigor Howie Roseman hasn’t shown for a linebacker in his entire tenure in the City of Brotherly Love. That’s the kind of player you target in free agency, not a mid-level cornerback.

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