Howie Roseman: Eagles looking to regain defensive swagger with C.J. Gardner-Johnson and other signings

Roseman emphasized that the Eagles want players "with mentality," as free-agent additions went toward addressing that gap. And the Eagles are unlikely to be done making aggressive offseason moves.

Eagles safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson (23) and quarterback Jalen Hurts walk off together after a 26-17 win over the Dallas Cowboys at Lincoln Financial Field in 2022.Read moreHeather Khalifa / Staff Photographer

by Jeff McLane

Published March 25, 2024, 6:00 p.m. ET

ORLANDO, Fla. — The Eagles defense was lacking in many areas last season, with the missing intangible of swagger resulting in the actual absence of a physical presence.

Defensive players not only played without confidence, they often weren’t imposing — although each attribute can feed the other.

Howie Roseman’s moves this offseason suggested that the Eagles thought as much, specifically signing free agents C.J. Gardner-Johnson and Devin White. But the general manager confirmed that his team sought to regain the mentality, as he called it, that the defense had just the season prior.

“I think that would be accurate to say: We were looking to regain our swagger and mentality back,” Roseman said on Monday at the NFL’s annual meeting. “And, obviously, what happened at the end of the year didn’t feel good and wasn’t acceptable for any of us. And so, [we wanted] to get players who can kind of bring that and have that motivation and that mentality.”

The most direct way to address that need was to upgrade the middle of the defense. A year ago, Roseman allowed linebackers T.J. Edwards and Kyzir White and safeties Marcus Epps and Gardner-Johnson to leave in free agency.

He couldn’t afford to keep them all, but many of the replacements didn’t pan out. Roseman has taken accountability for those whiffs, and the return of Gardner-Johnson on a three-year deal was the latest proof that the GM isn’t afraid to move quickly to correct his mistakes.

“It was important to bring in guys — all are relatively young, as far as free agents go, and all have tremendous football character, and mentality’s the word,” Roseman said. “We want guys with mentality. We want guys that reflect the city, reflect the style that we want to play on offense and defense.

“Obviously, you want talent from these guys, too.”

If reflect the city sounds familiar, it’s because former defensive coordinator Sean Desai used the phrase when he was first introduced last year and was asked to describe the unit he wanted to mold. But he failed to create that identity and was demoted when the Eagles were 10-3.

There were other issues with Desai, of course. Replacing him with Matt Patricia proved to be an even worse decision than initially hiring him. But the defense wasn’t among the league’s worst — particularly during a 1-6 finish — strictly because of player personnel.

And the Eagles recognized as much by getting the guy they originally wanted to succeed Jonathan Gannon: Vic Fangio. Having an established defensive coordinator with a reputation for being authoritative should alone add some “dawg” to that side of the ball.

It also helps that the Eagles have essentially been running a version of Fangio’s scheme since Nick Sirianni became head coach in 2021.

“With any coordinator that comes in, Nick does a great job of making sure that they stand in front of us and talk about their vision and their priorities and their position specifics,” Roseman said. “So that’s really important. But at the same time, since Nick has been here, a lot of the scheme has some overlap, and some of the position priorities are similar.

“So it’s not like we’re starting from scratch.”

Roseman didn’t have to find replacements with different parameters. But he did have to rebuild a unit that finished 26th in total defense and 30th in points allowed and tied for 23rd in turnovers in the NFL. The Eagles had just nine interceptions — eight fewer than they had in 2022 with Gardner-Johnson providing six in 12 games.

“It’s hard to find guys who have legitimate ball skills,” Roseman said of Gardner-Johnson.

Justin Simmons would qualify. The free-agent safety had 30 interceptions in eight seasons with the Broncos. Roseman wouldn’t rule out adding the unsigned 30-year-old to the secondary as well. But he seemed content with his current group — for now.

“We got Chauncey, Reed [Blankenship], Sydney [Brown], who’s obviously coming off an injury, coming back,” Roseman said. “I think that’s a great start for our team, for our defense at the safety position.”

Devin White, 26, who inked a one-year, $7.5 million contract, is coming off arguably the worst of his five seasons in the league. Last week, he acknowledged that his contract situation — he couldn’t work out an extension with the Buccaneers last offseason — affected his performance.

“Just like we didn’t have our best year, he would admit that he didn’t have his best year,” Roseman said. “I think sometimes you get in situations where you kind of get close to free agency and you’re trying to make plays.

“This is a guy who’s a captain and, obviously, been a great player. And I think he fits what we’re looking for, a guy who’s incredibly motivated.”

If White freelanced last season to increase his value, what’s to say he won’t again in another contact year? And then there’s Fangio, who employs a structure scheme that often doesn’t allow for improvisation.

“In terms of Vic and what he does, he’s looking for speed, he’s looking for explosiveness, which Devin certainly has,” Roseman said. “He’s looking for guys who are versatile and can play in space, play in coverage, get after the quarterback, and, obviously, fill in the run game, as well.”

White is also an off-ball linebacker who made splash plays sideline to sideline and as a blitzer, and carried himself with conviction — at least until last season. White is likely to pair with Nakobe Dean, who should be fully recovered from foot surgery by the start of next season, at the second level.

Roseman also acquired Oren Burks at inside linebacker earlier this month.

The most movement on defense this offseason, though, has been at edge rusher. The Eagles signed Bryce Huff to a three-year, $51.1 million deal. They took a flier on Zack Baun, who they believe can thrive on untapped potential in Fangio’s scheme, according to Roseman. And they brought back veteran captain Brandon Graham for one last go-around.

Huff doesn’t exactly qualify as a swagger guy. He was a situational pass rusher with the New York Jets, but sacks and quarterback pressures will offset what he may lack as a run defender.

“One of the things you look for is his skill set and I think one of the things that Bryce wants to prove wrong, and you see it, Bryce is heavy-handed,” Roseman said. “He understands leverage. He’s got explosiveness in his body.”

At the edge, the Eagles also restructured the remaining year on Josh Sweat’s contract after they granted him permission to shop his services to another team and for a better payday. Haason Reddick was given the same allowance, but there has yet to be a match.

Could the Eagles and Reddick work out a restructure on their own? It’s possible, but Roseman has moved forward in case Reddick does depart. The drafting of defensive tackles Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis was partly done in preparation for Fletcher Cox’s retirement.

The Eagles also have Milton Williams and Marlon Tuipulotu returning and added potential backup nose tackle PJ Mustipher to the interior of their D-line.

But with the main rush of free agency open, the draft just a month away, and the trade market always open with Roseman at the controls, cornerback remains the one defensive position the GM is likely not done with aggressively addressing — despite his endorsement of veterans Darius Slay and James Bradberry.

“I think on March 25, obviously, you look at the year Slay had — another Pro Bowl year for him,” Roseman said. “One of our captains. He’s still got explosiveness tools in his body. Did an unbelievable job when we had him on No. 1 receivers last year.

“It’s obvious to everyone, including JB, that JB didn’t have the year that he was expecting, or we were expecting. I think, obviously, he understands that and is driven to show that he’s the player that he was in 2022.”

Can he recapture that swagger? And will his attempt even happen in Philadelphia? Like the forecast for the Eagles’ 2024 defense: to be determined.