Heading into Year 2 with the Eagles, Jonathan Gannon’s multiple defense has the tools to improve

Jonathan Gannon was asked about the Eagles’ shorter practices and the outside criticism from some that Nick Sirianni’s training camp might not prepare his players.

“First of all, let me say this,” Gannon said Friday before practice. “I don’t know any narratives out there because I don’t really pay attention to that.”

Regarding the topic, it’s possible the coach was oblivious to perceptions about Sirianni’s schedule. But what about any narrative, especially ones related to Gannon and how much of Philadelphia viewed his first year as a defensive coordinator?

It’s unlikely he doesn’t at least have a sense of the almost rote complaints, fair or not, that have been recited since last season’s early struggles: Gannon was too passive; he didn’t blitz enough; his cornerbacks and safeties lined up too far off the ball; and, perhaps most insulting for a defensive coach, his unit lacked aggression.

The 39-year-old coordinator, of course, wants a stingy, physical, and, yes, aggressive defense. There was at times evidence that the Eagles could someday be defined as such in Gannon’s multiple system. In terms of yards allowed, both on the ground and through the air, they finished in the top 10 in the NFL.

But what the unit lacked, statistically and as an identity, was splashplayability, to coin a phrase. The Eagles finished second to last in the NFL in sacks per pass play, they finished tied for 26th in turnovers, tied for 23d on third down, and 29th in the red zone.

There were moments, several involving Pro Bowl cornerback Darius Slay, including a game-turning forced fumble that he returned for a touchdown against the Broncos. And there were other plus performers who saved Gannon from comparisons to Bill Davis, the last Eagles coordinator who tried to convert an even front to odd-man one.

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But Gannon’s death-by-a-thousand-paper-cuts defense often wasn’t aesthetically pleasing, especially to locals indoctrinated by Buddy Ryan’s and Jim Johnson’s blitz-happy systems.

His multiple-front, zone-heavy scheme can be effective, as anyone who watched the Super Bowl-winning Rams over the last two years can attest. But an impartial assessment of Gannon’s first foray into heading a defense has to account for various personnel deficiencies. Not only was the cupboard not as full, there were pieces that just didn’t fit.

General manager Howie Roseman made finding those parts a point of emphasis during the offseason. He signed free agent edge Haason Reddick first out of the gate to give Gannon a true strong-side 3-4 outside linebacker, but mostly to improve a pass rush that had fallen below team norms.

He drafted 6-foot-6, 336-pound defensive tackle Jordan Davis in the first round to anchor Gannon’s front in base personnel and to occupy gaps on run downs. He addressed the need for inside linebackers who can cover space by inking Kyzir White and drafting Nakobe Dean.

And Roseman acquired zone-savvy outside cornerback James Bradberry to pair with Slay. Each comes with concerns, but only the safety position, even after Jaquiski Tartt was added in June, appears to be substandard, at least on paper.

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Gannon still has to make the pieces work in all the variants of his scheme. He will use all of his active personnel on game days. And he will employ an assortment of fronts and coverages based upon situation and offensive tendencies.

It may be en vogue to trumpet the versatility of your scheme and your players. Jim Schwartz was utilizing nearly every defensive player in uniform on Sundays by his last season as the Eagles coordinator.

But the Vic Fangio system that Chargers head coach Brandon Staley, formerly the Rams defensive coordinator, and Gannon, among others, have adopted in some form, takes adaptability to another level. Fangio, who was fired as the Broncos’ head coach during the offseason, was a guest at Friday’s practice.

“We’re always looking to add really good football players that are versatile, and there are a lot of reasons behind that, one being scheme,” Gannon said in May. “One being it’s a matchup-driven league, so we’re looking to accentuate some of our matchups.

“It’s always on game day, there are so many jerseys, and you like guys to be able to do a couple different things on game day.”

It can get complicated. Gannon asks a lot of his charges. It’s fair to speculate if the heavy load hindered the safeties and linebackers in terms of how comfortably they felt disguising their coverages pre-snap. But his objectives are rather simple and number-based. How best can you marry the front and back without sacrificing bodies at either end?

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Davis should help on run downs. He’s almost like two linemen and should give defensive tackles Fletcher Cox, Javon Hargrave, and Milton Williams less to do. Reddick, who’s coming off back-to-back double digit sack campaigns, should upgrade the edge rush that still has talent with Josh Sweat and the returning Brandon Graham.

Gannon doesn’t blitz much because he doesn’t want to take from coverage when multiple-front looks sometimes can create as much havoc. Reddick will drop into coverage on occasion so as to not become predictable, but he should still rush around 85% to 90% of the time.

Graham played a similar role under Davis.

“I’m enjoying it all and I love that we do both,” he said Wednesday. “It’s like a mixture of both. I’m making sure that I’m fine-tuning some things from way back when, and then some stuff that I’m already good at in the 4-3 stuff.”

Gannon is cognizant of narratives outside the NovaCare Complex because it’s part of his job to be aware of the kinds of questions he’ll be asked, and because, well, when you’re asked several times in one news conference about balancing Reddick’s rushes with drops, you likely have a sense of motive.

As he walked off the field Friday, Gannon joked with a few reporters about Reddick’s percentages in practice.

It’s likely he’ll pay attention to the breakdown, as well, once the season starts.