Through the first month of the 2025 NFL regular season, the Philadelphia Eagles’ pass rush unit has been very disappointing. Fans expected this unit to take a step back with the losses of Josh Sweat, Brandon Graham, and Milton Williams in the offseason.
However, they didn’t foresee the Eagles only having five sacks as a team heading into Week 5, and for them to be down two edge rushers (Nolan Smith, Ogbo Okoronkwo) in consecutive weeks due to injury is less than ideal.
Without those two guys, especially Smith, Philadelphia needs someone quickly to step up on the edge. Luckily, the Eagles have veteran Josh Uche, who doesn’t have a sack yet this year, but is showing signs of potentially breaking out.
Eagles Need Josh Uche to Prove His Worth Following Recent Rash of Injuries
The 27-year-old pass rusher was signed to a one-year deal by the Eagles in the offseason after a disappointing 2024 season with the Kansas City Chiefs and New England Patriots.
Uche showed glimpses of what he could be in Vic Fangio’s system in the Eagles’ Week 1 game against the Dallas Cowboys, where they lost Jalen Carter due to an ejection. Uche didn’t have a sack, just one combined tackle. But recorded a 92.7 pass rush grade on 19 snaps (18 pass rush opportunities) and had four hurries, per Pro Football Focus.
For most fans, advanced stats like this don’t mean much since he didn’t get a sack. But Uche showed the ability to get off the LOS and into the backfield, and was just unfortunate that he couldn’t get a sack.
Uche took a step back in the pass rush department in Week 2, with a 56.0 grade (0 hurries) as he brought on a blitz twice. However, he was facing the Kansas City Chiefs’ offensive line, which is one of the better units in the league.
That said, the veteran pass rusher showed some slight improvements in Week 3 against the Los Angeles Rams with a 64.3 grade (1 hurry). However, in last week’s road win against Tampa Bay, Uche looked like the guy we saw against Dallas in Week 1.
The former Patriot produced an outstanding 89.4 pass rush grade in a season-high 30 snaps (17 pass rush). Again, he didn’t come up with a sack, but had five hurries, two tackles, and a stop.
Through the first four games, Uche has a 90.8 pass grade in 57 pass rush snaps. On Tuesday, Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio told reporters that Uche is improving, per John Clark of NBC Sports Philadelphia.
If you’re an Eagles fan, you like to hear that about Uche, and you hope that translates to sacks in the near future, as they try to replace Nolan Smith’s presence off the edge. Uche will get a chance to prove his worth against the Denver Broncos, who are ranked first in pass block win rate at 77%, per ESPN Analytics.