Eagles Own Best Defensive Line in NFL? PFF Rankings Revealed
What is the strength of the Philadelphia Eagles heading into the 2023 season? Some would say the defensive line, and others would point to the offensive line. The one thing they have in common is that they are both ranked No. 1 in the NFL, respectively.
Continuing its series from over the last few days, Pro Football Focus has ranked the top defensive line units in the league from No. 1 to No. 32. As many Eagle fans might assume, no team ranked higher than Philadelphia, as the team came in at No. 1 in the rankings.
Here's what PFF had to say about why Philly was deserving of the top spot:
A season ago, Philadelphia ranked second in the league in pressure percentage despite blitzing at a below-average rate. And this was largely due to the defense's ability to get after the quarterback with just four pass-rushers. ... There is a case to be made that Philadelphia’s second-string defensive line would also rank in the top 20 on this list.
Some may say the latter statement is an exaggeration by PFF, but others would argue that the Eagles do have an embarrassment of riches upfront defensively. Many teams around the league would love to take some of their second-stringers. For example, it is possible that Jalen Carter, the No. 9 overall pick, is coming off the bench, depending on how the Eagles line up.
The Eagles led the league in sacks last season (70). The second-most sacks came from Kansas City Chiefs (54), who would end up toppling Philly in the Super Bowl, 38-35. Additionally, the Eagles had four different players record double-digit sacks last fall, as Haason Reddick led the team with 16 sacks.
It was an impressive season, as the defensive line play was crucial to the Eagles' deep playoff run and trip to the Super Bowl.
Yet, what may be more impressive is that after losing one of their stars in defensive lineman Javon Hargrave through free agency, general manager Howie Roseman managed to draft one of the top defensive line prospects in Carter. As PFF noted, Carter earned a 92.3 grade this past season which was the best among all players at the Power 5 level.
Losing a valuable piece like Hargrave would've been a huge blow to most teams. Yet, thanks to the savvy of Roseman in recent years, the Eagles still had a top-10 pick in after a season where they played for the Super Bowl.
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