Giants Part Ways with Wink Martindale; Should Eagles Call to Aid Defense?

There aren't many coaches like Wink Martindale out there. For the Philadelphia Eagles to turn the page on a porous defense in 2023, they need to make sure they get the long-time defensive mind.

For the last half of the 2023 season, the Philadelphia Eagles' defense has been among the worst in football. Poor strategy mixed with exhausted players has left a once-strong unit with a leaky faucet at the worst possible time. 

Luckily for the Birds, their defensive coordinator issues might soon be at an end. 

USA Today

Wednesday afternoon saw their NFC East rival New York Giants mutually part ways with defensive coordinator Wink Martindale. In two seasons with the Giants, Martindale's blitz-happy scheme hasn't looked very good in terms of numbers, but it's been the lone consistent group under Brian Daboll.

Since he took the job, Martindale has led the Giants' defense to finish 17th and 26th across the league in points allowed. The unit has finished in the top 10 in passing touchdowns allowed but has struggled against the run. 

The talent gap between what New York has on defense and that of Philadelphia is significant. The Eagles have Pro Bowl players in both the secondary and defensive line. 

It's what makes Martindale's potential candidacy so intriguing to Eagle fans. 

Philadelphia hasn't had a true blitzing coordinator since Jim Johnson passed away following the 2008 season with cancer. Since that time, fans across the globe have been clamoring to find a person to run the defense the way they loved during the glory years of the early 2000s. 

Martindale might be the closest one to that. 

The former Ravens' defensive coordinator has been at the top of the league in blitz percentages over the last five years. It's helped teams with menial talent make up for those losses with strategic chaos. 

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It's that kind of strategic chaos that the Eagles have been missing on defense this season. 

No matter what happens at to end of the season, Philadelphia expects to be in the market for a new defensive leader in the locker room. The first name on that list should be Martindale with a long gap following anyone else.