Eagles Coach Confirms Veteran is Benched for Playoffs

When the Philadelphia Eagles signed free-agent pass rusher Bryce Huff to a three-year, $51 million deal this past offseason, they thought he’d be the perfect fit for Vic Fangio’s scheme and a good replacement for Haason Reddick.

However, that hasn’t materialized for the 26-year-old defensive end, who was surpassed on the depth chart by Josh Sweat, Nolan Smith Jr., and rookie Jaylx Hunt. The former Jets pass rusher had a disappointing regular season, recording eight quarterback pressures, four QB hits, three tackles for loss, and 2.5 sacks in 12 games.

With the postseason underway, it’s a good way to start anew and hopefully make an impact, but that didn’t happen for Huff. The fifth-year pass rusher played one snap in last week’s playoff win against the Green Bay Packers.

On Tuesday, Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio met with reporters and was asked about Huff’s playing time ahead of Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Rams.

“We had a good three-man rotation with the other guys, and we stuck with it,” Fangio said (h/t Zach Berman of PHLY).

The longtime defensive coordinator struck gold with the three-man rotation at defensive end and it paid off against the Packers last week. Smith had a monster game off the edge, posting eight combined tackles, three QB pressures, two sacks, and two tackles for loss.

At the same time, Sweat and Hunt didn’t make a lot of noise in Sunday’s game, but Fangio likely trusts them to make a play or create pressure over Huff.

The Eagles will need this trio to have a huge performance against Rams starting QB Matthew Stafford, who had 209 passing yards and two touchdowns.

When Philadelphia played the Rams in Los Angeles earlier this season, the Eagles' defense had five sacks. Milton Williams led the way with two sacks, while Sweat chipped in with a sack.

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