Vic Fangio holds the cards. They come in various shapes, different powers, but put them all together and he has a winning hand. One that the Eagles are wagering could pay big, big dividends for the remainder of the 2025 NFL season.
In this case, the cards are the players in Fangio's defensive end/outside linebacker room. The EDGE guys. A position group that has a myriad of responsibilities – rushing the quarterback, setting the edge against the run, at times dropping into coverage, crashing down the line of scrimmage and – not to be ignored – playing heads up football against bootlegs and screens and passes in the flat to running backs and tight ends.
It is a complicated position – actually two positions rolled into one given the multitude of defensive fronts the Eagles employ – and it is a force of strength for a team that tidied up the group in a matter of a couple of weeks. An EDGE group that had been hit by injuries and an early retirement earlier in the season now rolls out the kind of options and talent and depth that every team would like to have.
"We're all just trusting each other and playing ball," 16-year veteran Brandon Graham said after Monday night's 10-7 win in Green Bay. Graham played 10 productive snaps in a defensive-led victory. "We got a lot here and we're using all of us."
It's true. The positional transformation took place over weeks sandwiching the Bye Week. Graham unretired and rejoined the roster. Nolan Smith came back to the active roster after missing five games with a triceps injury. The Eagles traded for Jaelan Phillips, and he became an instant contributor to the defense.
Those players joined Jalyx Hunt and Joshua Uche on the active roster. Patrick Johnson moved to the practice squad, although he was elevated to the roster for the Green Bay game and contributed on special teams.
Suddenly, the Eagles have a rotation, and a darn good one. Phillips made a sensational debut for the Eagles, registering seven quarterback pressures, six total tackles, two tackles for loss, and a fumble recovery while playing 53 of the 68 total defensive snaps. Hunt was next, contributing a sack, two tackles for loss, and five total tackles on 43 snaps. Smith played 19 snaps and was active with a sack, a couple of quarterback hits, and two tackles. Uche played five special teams snaps and had an assisted tackle. The Eagles also used rookie Jihaad Campbell at times as an on-ball linebacker and gained some valuable pressure on quarterback Jordan Love with timely and effective blitzes from linebacker Nakobe Dean.
Monday night was just the beginning of what Fangio can do with this group. He is a master at building his week-to-week scheme around the talents of his players, so there is no telling how much different things will look on Sunday night against the high-powered Detroit Lions.
But this much is certain: The Eagles plan to bring it. Each and every down with a variety of personnel packages.
"I still think," Phillips said after the game during which the defense registered three quarterback sacks and limited Green Bay to seven points, "that there's a lot of meat on the bone."
That's what the Eagles hope to see. More down and dirty and physical and violent football from the entire front, which works hand in hand with the players on the edge. A position that was viewed as a question mark just a few weeks ago is now a major plus into the second half of this regular season.
"It feels good. We're all working together to affect the quarterback," Smith said. "We play together and when we play together, we are unstoppable. We are on one page and we keep hunting, keep going."
They are doing it as a group. That's the mentality – all for one, one for all. Every day, they expect the chemistry to grow and their performance to improve.
"We're just building," Graham said. "Doesn't matter who is making the plays. We're out there to win. One week it might be somebody else and the next week it might be you. We're out here to win and that's all that matters."
