Fletcher Cox Believes in New-Look Defense

Most of the Eagles’ offseason moves on the defensive side of the ball came during free agency, the two biggest of which were trading for cornerback Darius Slay and signing free agent Javon Hargrave.

Defensive tackle Fletcher Cox was pleased with both of them.

It wasn’t all additions, however. There were some subtractions, too.

The big one was safety Malcolm Jenkins, who left for New Orleans in free agency when he and the Eagles could not agree to terms on a new contract. Veteran linebacker Nigel Bradham also was not brought back, though he remains a free agent.

Cox, who is one of the leaders on the defense along with Brandon Graham, spoke about the changes on a video call for about 15 minutes on Tuesday afternoon.

Slay and Cox were recruited together at Mississippi State while in high school and the two spoke shortly after the Eagles acquired Slay shortly after free agency began in mid-March.

“I told him we win around here, we do things differently around here,” said Cox about Slay. “The biggest thing for him was I know what he can bring to our team, the character, the swagger, the hard work, and the leadership.”

As for Hargrave, Cox has yet to meet the newcomer due to COVID-19 restrictions.

Hargrave was signed from the Pittsburgh Steelers in the early days of free agency, and, according to Cox, is itching to get with his new teammates.

“I heard a number of good things about him,” said Cox. “We chatted on the phone a couple of times. He’s ready to come in and give the city of Philly all he’s got. That’ all he’s talking about is give the city and this organization all he’s got.

“He’s ready to come in and learn the defense. I know it’s kind of tough for him right now, he’s not in the building, but he said he’s really excited and I’m excited for him. Whenever all this craziness is over with (I’ll) be ready to get back with those guys.”

Losing Jenkins is especially notable since he started all 96 games for the Eagles after joining them as a free agent in 2014.

“He was a great guy in the locker room, a great guy on the field, a great guy for the city of Philadelphia, but we have to understand it’s a business,” said Cox. “For me, just have to keep raising the bar.”

The Eagles defense finished 10 overall in the NFL in 2019 and was third against the run, and the defensive line figures to make life difficult again to run on.

In addition to Cox and Hargrave, the Eagles also have Malik Jackson returning from a season-ending injury suffered in the opener, Hassan Ridgeway, and Anthony Rush.

“I’m excited about (the entire defense),” said Cox. “Obviously you have to trust what those guys are doing upstairs, trust they’re bringing in the best players for us to win, put us in position to win, anyway. We just have to work together.

“That’s never been a problem since I’ve been in Philadelphia. You have to trust each other, go out there and work collectively as a defense, and play team defense, which we always do that. I’m excited about all the new additions, excited to see everybody get out there and run around again and have some fun.”