The Philadelphia Eagles could be on the market for a defensive end after losing Derek Barnett for the season due to a torn ACL. Former Eagles tight end Clay Harbor floated a possible replacement: Free agent Jason Pierre-Paul.
Jason Pierre Paul is a free agent and wants to play still. I think he is worth a look. #flyEaglesFly #Eagles
The former Giants defensive end is a three-time Pro Bowler, most recently earning that honor in 2020. He was an All-Pro in 2011 and won two Super Bowls – one with the Giants and one with the Buccaneers. Last season in Tampa Bay, the 33-year-old had 2.5 sacks in 12 games.
His name was also floated for the Eagles by Jeff Kerr of CBS Sports. At his peak, Pierre-Paul was one of the best pass rushers in the league. In 2011, he racked up 16.5 sacks for the Giants. In 2014, he hit 12.5. Inconsistency was a bit of a theme, though, as he dropped off in 2012 with only 6.5 sacks, and combined for just eight sacks through 20 games in 2015 and 2016. He had a big year in 2018 in Tampa, again notching 12.5 sacks.
The question the Eagles need to answer is not whether he has a double digit sack season left in him, though. It’s whether he can contribute more than Tarron Jackson. Jackson had 1 sack and 1 forced fumble in 17 games last year, while notching 18 tackles.
Don’t be surprised if the Eagles do bring Jason Pierre-Paul, or other veteran free agents, in for a workout this week. It would make sense to do their due diligence, as backup pass rushers are among the most important backups in football since they will tend to see significant snaps as part of a rotation.
Other Free Agent Defensive Ends
There are a couple of other names of note listed among the top free agent defensive ends, according to Spotrac.
Takkarist McKinley is only 26 years old, and has 20 sacks over 60 career games, but has battled injuries throughout his career. McKinley suffered a season ending Achilles injury late last year, just a year after failing physicals with multiple teams due to a lingering groin injury according to News 5 in Cleveland. If he’s healthy, McKinley could be worthwhile. But that’s a huge if.
Mario Edwards could be poached from the Jaguars practice squad, but the former second round pick has never quite lived up to expectations, notching 16.5 sacks in 86 career games. At this point in his career, it’s not clear that the 28-year-old offers anything more than Jackson.
Dee Ford has played outside linebacker and defensive end throughout his career, and is a productive pass rusher. Unfortunately, he’s dealt with ongoing back problems that ended his time in San Francisco. It’s hard to imagine that he’s anywhere near 100%, but if he is close to recovering, he’d surge to the top of the list. Ford has 40 sacks in 85 games, and has gotten double digit sacks in both seasons in which he started 14 or more games.
Eagles Could Just Promote From Within
For now, it seems more likely that the Eagles will work with the talent they have on the roster. During his Monday press conference on September 12, head coach Nick Sirianni talked up Tarron Jackson and the team’s depth on the defensive line.
“We have some good options there, we have a good rotation right there,” Sirianni said. “Tarron wasn’t up yesterday, but how quickly it can turn from you not being up for a game to you having a significant role.”
The Eagles do also have some positional flexibility. Milton Williams could move from defensive tackle to defensive end, Haason Reddick could line up as a defensive end on passing downs and rush from an upright position, and Javon Hargrave or Fletcher Cox could kick out to defensive end, especially on rushing downs.
So perhaps the Eagles will choose to roll with their current depth, and adjust situationally.
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Ex-Eagles Playmaker Suggests Signing Pro Bowl Pass Rusher to Replace Barnett