The Philadelphia Eagles have many quality linebackers, and all of their starters are solid. The depth at inside linebacker may be tested if a starter goes down though.
The Philadelphia Eagles have a solid linebacking unit, and their starters are all reliable. On the inside, DeMeco Ryans and Mychal Kendricks are each returning.
Kendricks transitioned to the 3-4 scheme well, and he finished with 106 tackles, four sacks and three interceptions.
Ryans also performed well as a 3-4 inside linebacker, registering 127 tackles, four sacks and two interceptions.
Trent Cole and Connor Barwin will return as the starting outside linebackers. Cole continued to be a disruptive force as a pass rusher while transitioning from being a 4-3 defensive end. The Pro Bowler finished with eight sacks and excelled in defending the run.
Barwin did not show as much pass-rushing ability as he showed in Houston, but his tackling was reliable while his run defense proved useful. The former Texan finished with five sacks and a career-high 82 tackles.
At inside linebacker, Najee Goode will be the primary backup. He has not seen much action in his first two years, but the Eagles are expected to give him more playing time.
Outside linebacker has tons of depth with the drafting of Marcus Smith in the first round, and Brandon Graham is still on the team as well.
Smith was considered a reach many analysts, but he finished with 14.5 sacks in his senior season at Louisville.
Graham has been a bust since being drafted in the first round, but he will still be able to provide experience and depth at outside linebacker.
Bryan Braman will also stick around at outside linebacker for special teams purposes. He finished second on the team in special teams tackles with eight.
The final inside linebacker spot is up for grabs between Jason Phillips and Casey Matthews. Matthews has more experience on the Eagles, but his days may be numbered since Phillips was signed as a free agent for upside before missing 2013 with a torn ACL.
The Eagles are likely to carry eight or nine linebackers in all, and they will have quality depth at outside linebacker. They have a solid inside linebacker starting duo, but the depth is still questionable.
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