The Philadelphia Eagles’ Super Bowl win over the Kansas City Chiefs in February had several things that will stick in the minds of fans for a long time. One of those was the performance of defensive lineman Milton Williams, who dominated with four pressures and two sacks to help Vic Fangio’s defense shut down Patrick Mahomes.
Williams has since signed a four-year, $104 million contract with the New England Patriots, and the void was a big storyline heading into OTAs. But while Williams was getting acclimated to his new team, the Eagles were getting to work defending their title, and it presented an ugly truth about one of their key players on the defensive line one year ago.
Ty Robinson May Become the Eagles’ Milton Williams Replacement
The Eagles had planned to use Moro Ojomo in the starting role to replace Williams, but that designation is used loosely in Fangio’s defense. With players rotating in and out to keep everyone fresh and effective, the Eagles were wise to use a fourth-round pick on Nebraska defensive lineman Ty Robinson in April’s draft.
Robinson created some headlines on social media for his pet camel, but he also caused some of his new teammates to take notice, including defensive tackle Jalen Carter.
“That boy is fire, I ain’t going to lie,” Carter said via SI’s Chuck Bausman. “He’s a big boy, he’s moving good. I saw his highlights before he came. He’s here, he’s working. I think he’s going to have a big impact this season."
A five-year starter for the Cornhuskers, Robinson broke out in his sixth and final season, notching a career-high 37 total tackles with 12.5 tackles for loss and seven sacks. Most notably, Robinson posted a 9.91 relative athletic score, which is in the same neighborhood as the 9.96 RAS Williams posted during his pre-draft process in 2022.
Robinson has a long way to go before being deemed a breakout, but the early returns say something about Williams’s departure. Ojomo figures to step into a larger role after notching a career-high 20 tackles a season ago, but the Eagles have Robinson behind him, who could make a similar splash as a rotational player.
It shows that while the Eagles can find gems, they’re also confident enough to let a player like Williams walk away. It says interesting things about Ojomo’s upcoming starting role and what fans could expect from Robinson in his rookie season.