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When EJ Perry swapped a midnight green jersey for a teal one, it opened up a roster spot for another undrafted rookie free agent. The Philadelphia Eagles filled it by adding Western Michigan standout Ali Fayad, according to Matt Zenitz. Not a household name, but a player who comes highly regarded.
Fayad posted 40 tackles (18 for loss) and 13 sacks while terrorizing opponents off the edge. The 6-foot-2, 250-pounder was the Defensive Player of the Year in the Mid-American Conference and showed off a dizzying spin move at the 2022 East-West Shrine Bowl. Pro Football Network thought that performance was good enough to make him a Day 3 pick in the draft.
“Fluid moving in every direction, easily alters his angle of attack to chase plays in pursuit, and can bend off the edge,” wrote Tony Pauline. “Disruptive force who fires off the snap with a quick first step and plays with excellent lean.”
.@WMU_Football’s Ali Fayad winning with a disgusting spin move at #ShrineBowl practices 🌪
Fayad also got his name trending on Twitter when he successfully pulled off a “ghost rush” by flashing his inside hand before ducking under the blocker’s punch.
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Pass Rusher: 4-3 Defensive End or 3-4 Linebacker
Fayad is a natural pass rusher who excels at pressuring the quarterback. Scouts kept projecting him as a 3-4 linebacker due to his smallish frame, but the Eagles have never cared about stashing light defensive ends. The Michigan native is quick — his 4.89 in the 40 was slower than he expected — and he put up 28 reps on the bench press at his pro day. His hands measured 9.875 inches with a 77-inch wingspan. Fayad’s preference is to line up at edge rusher in the NFL.
“At the end of the day I’m an edge rusher and I’m very dominant at it and I’m like really the best at what I do,” Fayad told the Onebar and Lupagus Show. “So if you want a solid and dominant edge rusher you want to put me on the outside of the offensive tackle … at the end of the day the film speaks for itself and I’m just excited to play.”
Work is one thing, execution is another. Ride your wave no matter how bad the water get keep surfing 🌊🏄♂️
A.J. Brown Will Wear No. 11 in Philadelphia
Zach Pascal will be surrendering his No. 11 jersey to A.J. Brown. The new WR1 in Philadelphia will keep the same number he wore in Tennessee while becoming the first Eagles player to don that jersey since Carson Wentz left town.
Brown and quarterback Jalen Hurts are already best friends so look for a ton of No. 1 to No. 11 touchdowns during the 2022 season. Their chemistry should rub off on the entire Eagles’ offense.
“We talk all the time and just trying to be on the same page all the time is huge for our offense,” Brown said of his relationship with Hurts. “It’s huge for a team, we already have that friendship, so we can hold each other accountable. We know what makes each other tick so just getting everyone on board and on that same level, it’s different.”
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