This week, there will be plenty of focus on the struggles of the Philadelphia Eagles‘ safety duo, rightfully so.
But in the eyes of former Eagles defender Hugh Douglas, the real struggles on the Eagles’ defense start with the defensive line play.
Following the Eagles’ 27-7 loss against the Chicago Bears on Monday Night Football, Douglas dished out his thoughts on the reason behind the loss.
Ex-Eagles DT Blames The Trenches For Struggles vs Bears
“They’re getting manhandled up front,” Douglas said on 94WIP on Tuesday.
“You have some good pass rushers in there, and the ball is coming out quick. Now, I will say this as a former defender: the ball coming out quick kind of throws your rhythm off. A lot of times when it’s like that, you have to stay with your pass rush because you know the quarterback is going to at some point hold the ball. A lot of times when the ball is coming out quick and guys are nervous and whatever, and you get all discombobulated. Now, they’re just dictating the game to you because now you don’t know what’s going on. They’re doing a lot of misdirection stuff, they’re going one way and coming another. Guys are just out of position. It was like they had them flummoxed all last night. With that, you’re not getting any good pass rush.”
To Douglas’ point, the Bears clearly didn’t want their third-string quarterback scanning the field in the pocket for long. The game plan was getting the ball out quickly, and the Eagles didn’t have any answers up front–or really anywhere else, for that matter.
“There was a few plays in there where you got some decent pass rush but the ball was coming out quick. In the secondary, it looked like guys were just biting on everything. There were guys in the secondary running free all day. It starts in the trenches, man.”
Last season, the Eagles’ defensive line was a real strength for the team. Pressuring quarterbacks at a high rate, all of that success leaked into the rest of the defense. Without the defensive line getting pressure, opposing QBs aren’t struggling to get clean throws off. And since the Eagles are struggling in coverage outside of their top two corners this year, offenses have been able to have their way with the defense more often than not.
More Money, More Responsibility
It’s true that the safety duo is struggling, and the linebackers haven’t done an excellent job in coverage, but the pass rush is where the money is invested.
Jordan Davis and Jalen Carter both received major paydays for the first time in their career this offseason. Jonathan Greenard landed a big extension after getting traded to the Eagles. There is a combined $300-plus million invested in that trio. Their production? 1.0 sack and one QB hit.
The Eagles will be back on the field next Sunday to face the Los Angeles Rams. After facing a third-stringer in Chicago, the road certainly gets more difficult.