Top 25 Eagles Ranked: Landon Dickerson on Cusp of Elite Company
PHILADELPHIA - Landon Dickerson was a bit of a gamble as the No. 37 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, one that has paid off quickly for the Philadelphia Eagles.
Despite tearing his ACL in the 2020 SEC Championship Game, the second one for Dickerson in a stellar college career that started at Florida State before finishing as the Rimington Trophy winner at Alabama, the massive 6-6, 332-pound third-year player has already turned into a Pro Bowl player at left guard for the Eagles.
When Dickerson, now 24, was drafted the original plan was for him to be brought along slowly as the heir-apparent to All-Pro center Jason Kelce, a trajectory that made the team more comfortable with the late-season ACL tear with the Crimson Tide.
The idea was a potential redshirt year anyway giving Dickerson plenty of time to rehab and get back to 100 percent but real life got in the way.
First, Brandon Brooks was injured and Dickerson was forced into the lineup at right guard in Week 3 barely nine months after the knee injury. Moreso, Isaac Seumalo, then the left guard, suffered a season-ending injury the next week and Dickerson was ping-ponged to that position where he settled in to start the final 12 games and a playoff loss to Tampa Bay.
By 2022 Dickerson was entrenched at left guard in between Kelce and left tackle Jordan Mailata, making Philadelphia the most physical left-handed team in the league with over 700 pounds acting as road graders for Jalen Hurts and the running backs.
As a rookie Dickerson was a part of a line that produced the No. 1 rushing offense in the league (159.7 per game) and the most explosive plays (163). The Eagles also produced single-season franchise records in rushing yards with 2,715.
The sequel produced a franchise-record 477 points and 32 rushing touchdowns, the third most in NFL history while earning Dickerson his first of what figures to be many Pro Bowl berths.
A physical force who is country strong Dickerson, like his linemate and best friend on the team Mailata, is already known for his pancake blocks.
Eagles Today beat writers Ed Kracz and John McMullen put together their own top 25 players independent of each other’s rankings and then assigned point values to the rankings, with 25 points awarded to the player ranked first on each list, 24 to the player ranked second, and so on, with one point going to the player that was put 25th.
The highest ranking from either reporter breaks any ties in the ballot.
Dickerson was No. 11 on lists by both McMullen and Kracz so the thought process on where he stands was very consistent.
So far, the rankings have shaken out this way:
No. 25 - RB Kenny Gainwell
No. 24 - LB Nicholas Morrow
No. 23 - S Reed Blankenship
No. 22 - S Terrell Edmunds
No. 21 - K Jake Elliott
No. 20 – LB Nakobe Dean
No. 19 – DT Jordan Davis
No. 18 - DT Jalen Carter
No. 17 - RB D’Andre Swift
No. 16 - DT Milton Williams
No. 15 - DT Fletcher Cox
No. 14 - CB Avonte Maddox
No. 13 - DE Brandon Graham
No. 12 - CB James Bradberry
No. 11 - LG Landon Dickerson
A unanimous first-team All-American during his final season in college at Alabama, Dickerson was on pace to be a first-round pick before the ACL tear so the calculated choice to take a flyer and assume the worm would turn on the injury front for a young man has worked brilliantly so far for the Eagles.
Dickerson was graded by Pro Football Focus as the 22nd best offensive guard in the NFL during his rookie season and that spiked to No. 15 in 2022, where Dickerson was top 10 as a pass blocker (No. 9) and No. 14 as a run-blocker, his perceived strength.
Despite that success, Dickerson is usually his own toughest critic.
"A lot,” Dickerson said when asked what he needs to work on in the spring. “Pass protection. Run blocking. Stunts and games. Screens. Vision. ...I still feel like I just got here."
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-John McMullen contributes Eagles coverage for SI.com's Eagles Today and is the NFL Insider for JAKIB Media. You can listen to John, alongside legendary sports-talk host Jody McDonald every morning from 8-10 on ‘Birds 365,” streaming live on YouTube. John is also the host of his own show "Football 24/7 and a daily contributor to ESPN South Jersey. You can reach him at jmcmullen44@gmail.com or on Twitter @JFMcMullen
