Can Eagles Depth in 1 Position Group Survive NFL Free Agency?

The Philadelphia Eagles lost veteran backups Sua Opeta and Jack Driscoll.

PHILADELPHIA - When it comes to the Philadelphia Eagles and the new league year,  most of the headlines have been about the comings, a host of familiar names, including one-time first-round picks like Saquon Barkley, Devin White, and Kenny Pickett.

Those leaving the NovaCare Complex haven’t gotten as much ink because they have been role players. It is noteworthy that the organization lost two of its backup offensive linemen in recent days with Sua Opeta agreeing to terms with Tampa Bay, followed by Jack Driscoll relocating a little south of that in Miami on Monday.

Sua Opeta should get a chance in Tampa Bay :: Ed Kracz/Eagles Today

The offensive line had been the Eagles’ strength in recent seasons and most of that can be tied to stars like Jason Kelce, Lane Johnson, and Brandon Brooks being further supplemented by the development of Landon Dickerson and Jordan Mailata.

Depth, though, has also been a key part of offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland’s tenure in Philadelphia and the assumption is the game’s top offensive line coach will get others up to speed to handle what Opeta and Driscoll have done in recent seasons.

In 2023, Opeta started six games, one at left guard when Dickerson injured his thumb and five at RG for Cam Jurgens due to foot and pec issues, ll while playing a career-high 527 reps, 46 percent of the team’s offensive total.

The work was the culmination of a slow and steady climb for Opeta at “Stoutland University,” the Mailata-coined description of Stoutland’s teaching that has taken off since the Eagles’ star left tackle began introducing himself from the “school.”

Opeta arrived as a big, strong undrafted rookie out of Weber State and lasted five years in the top O-line room in the NFL. Ironically, Miami once tried to pilfer Opeta off the Eagles’ practice squad when he was a rookie but the Eagles thought so much of his potential that they elevated Opeta to the 53.

Opeta leaves Philadelphia having played in 40 games and starting 11 when you include the postseason.

Driscoll had an easier launching pad as a fourth-round pick in 2020 and finished his four-year rookie deal with the Eagles having started 17 games and playing at both tackle spots and right guard while ranging from 172 snaps last season to a high of 512 in 2021.

With Kelce retiring that means three of the Eagles’ game-day OL from last season won’t be back in 2024.

The plan is for Jurgens to move inside from RG to take over at center for Kelce and for 2023 third-round pick Tyler Steen to get an opportunity to lock down the right guard position.

As for depth the organization took a flyer on the injury-prone Matt Hennessy as the potential game-day interior backup. Hennessy was clicking as the starting center with the Falcons in 2021, especially as a run blocker, and they moved over to left guard in 2022 before knee injuries paused his career.

Jack Driscoll Becoming Eagles' Latest Swiss Amy Knife

The massive Fred Johnson is the leader in the clubhouse when it comes to the swing tackle position and has some starting experience back in Cincinnati from 2019-2021 while veteran Le’Raven Clark, whom Mailata raves about as a scout team player, is back on a futures deal as well.

Other o-linemen on Philadelphia’s offseason roster are largely unproven, players like Brett Toth, Lecitus Smith, Jason Poe, and Darian Kinnard.

With that landscape, you can almost guarantee GM Howie Roseman will be investing a premium draft pick on the offensive line even if the end game is not immediate gratification, a philosophy he explained when drafting Jurgens over the more high-profile Nakobe Dean in 2022.

"Unfortunately for our fans at the time, you know, I'm always going to go [offensive line], [defensive line],” Roseman admitted at the time. “That's how we roll. That's how we build this thing.”

It might not be obvious but the Eagles' offensive line needs reinforcements and foundational building blocks always get extra attention.