Who Stays, Who Goes: Linebackers

It's time for the Eagles to invest more resources in a position that needs upgraded

It’s time for the Eagles to get it right at linebacker, as our series of who stays, who goes shifts to a position that must get better.

After years of signing free agents that haven’t worked – Eric Wilson, L.J. Fort, Paul Worrilow, Corey Nelson – it’s time to invest an early draft pick on one.

They have three first-round picks and there are three who could certainly help that might be in the range of their selections at 15, 16, and 19. They are Georgia’s Nakobe Dean, Utah’s Devin Lloyd, and perhaps even Alabama’s Christian Harris.

Maybe even sign a free agent.

It worked when they signed Nigel Bradham in 2016, who paired nicely with third-round pick Jordan Hicks from 2015. 

There are some interesting free-agent linebackers, including Atlanta’s Dante Fowler, a former first-round pick of the Jacksonville Jaguars, and then-GM Dave Caldwell, who is a current Eagles personnel executive.

MORE: Six Off-season Trade Hypotheticals for Philadelphia Eagles

As for what the Eagles have in-house, there are some who won’t stay, led by Genard Avery, who got more playing time this year than the previous one-and-a-half seasons combined since he arrived in a trade with the Browns.

There wasn’t much that distinguished him, though, in any of his 358 snaps (32 percent).

He and Joe Ostman are free agents, and neither should stay.

The biggest name on the return bubble is Alex Singleton, who is also a free agent.

There’s a chance the Eagles’ leading tackler the past two seasons does not return despite leading the team in tackles the past two seasons, with 130 this year and 119 last year.

Singleton makes tackles, but some will say many are too far down the field to matter. Yet, he is always around the ball and has an interception in each of the past two seasons.

He is an NFL survivor, having overcome multiple releases and a successful stint in the Canadian Football League to become an adequate NFL starter.

Singleton, though, is 28, and the Eagles can certainly use an upgrade at an off-the-ball linebacker spot.

Still, he should return on a relatively inexpensive deal to do what he is known for, and that is excel on special teams. The units need to improve following a disappointing season. Singleton, who was the special teams captain, played just 48 percent of the ST snaps.

Bring him back as a depth piece but up his ST snaps into the 70 percent range and that should help.

T.J. Edwards will return. 

He signed a one-year contract extension that will pay him $2.15 million and will count less than that against the salary cap.

T.J. Edwards / John McMullen

He was inserted as the full-time season after the first month of the season and ended up starting 14 games. He finished just behind Singleton in tackles with 125 while also notching an interception.

“At first, it’s kind of figuring out where you fit into the puzzle in a way,” said Edwards during the team’s cleanout day following their playoff loss in Tampa. “You have your role … and your inner drive – you want to be that guy, you want to be the starter, the green dot (as the defensive play-caller).

"At the start of the year, it was really just me making sure I’m on top of everything in terms of the playbook, in terms of every linebacker position knowing what to do, and making sure I was ready when called upon.

“Just kind of throughout the year, just really building a chemistry with the guys … Being the middle linebacker, I wanted to become a leader, whether it’s leading through action, or keeping the guys cool under tough times. That’s something I took a big step and something I want to focus on.”

He is the likely starter in 2022, though that could change if defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon departs for a head coaching job in Houston.

Patrick Johnson and JaCoby Stevens are heading into their second years and should also return along with Shaun Bradley, whose special teams work earned him an alternate spot in the Pro Bowl, and Davion Taylor.

Christian Elliss, who was on the practice squad all season before making his debut against the Cowboys in Week 18, making two tackles in seven snaps, was signed to a Reserve/Futures contract following the season but has an uphill climb to have any sort of role.

Taylor is an interesting case since 2020’s third-round draft pick hasn’t been able to stay healthy.

He has shown progress, but his first two seasons have ended with him on IR.

Taylor had an emerging role this season and made 39 tackles, with 24 of them solo, in nine games, six of which were starts. That’s when a knee injury ended his season in November.

If Taylor has another injury-riddled 2022, he won’t be around in 2023.

For now, his high draft status has earned him at least this season.

Find other position breakdowns at www.eaglemaven.com

Ed Kracz is the publisher of SI.com’s Eagle Maven and co-host of the Eagles Unfiltered Podcast. Check out the latest Eagles news at www.SI.com/NFL/Eagles or www.eaglemaven.com and please follow him on Twitter: @kracze.