Philadelphia Eagles: 3 veteran defensive tackles to fill out the depth chart
Goodness gracious, the Philadelphia Eagles‘ defensive line is stacked.
After only recording 29 sacks in 2021, the second-worst mark in the NFL according to Statmuse, the Birds now boast a defensive line featuring more Pro Bowlers than starting spots, with free agent signee Haason Reddick paired up with the core four of Javon Hargrave, Fletcher Cox, Josh Sweat, and Brandon Graham. Factor in 2021 third-round pick Milton Williams, who committed some solid work to tape, and the future is looking bright for the Eagles’ defensive production in 2022.
But hey, why stop there? While it feels unlikely that the Eagles will make another big-time signing on the defensive line and may not even follow through on their reported affinity for Michigan edge rusher David Ojabo come draft day, that doesn’t mean the team couldn’t still use an upgrade on, specifically at defensive tackle.
With Hassan Ridgeway unlikely to return in 2022 and Marlon Tuipulotu a question mark, here are three veteran defensive tackles who could bolster the Philadelphia Eagles’ defensive tackle rotation Haloti Ngata-style.
Gerald McCoy could add a few more Pro Bowls to the Philadelphia Eagles defensive line.
Gerald McCoy just might be the most interesting veteran defensive tackle on the market.
The former third-overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft, McCoy recorded at least five sacks from 2012-2019 and probably would have hit that mark again in 2020 and 2021, too, if he hadn’t suffered a ruptured quadriceps with the Dallas Cowboys in the summer of 2020, and suffered a knee injury that landed him on IR nine snaps into his one-year stint with the Las Vegas Raiders.
While McCoy isn’t the same player who dominated offensive lines from 2012-17 as a member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, if he can just return to his 2019 form in a midnight green uniform, it would provide the Eagles with a solid change-of-pace rusher who can eat up minutes when Fletcher Cox and Javon Hargrave need a break and a proven leader who was named a captain in his first and only season with the Panthers under Ron Rivera.