Three personnel needs for rebuilding the Eagles defense under Vic Fangio

MOBILE, Ala. — With Vic Fangio officially in the fold and the draft process now in full swing, the Eagles’ efforts to rebuild the defense in the image of the team’s new coordinator truly begin.

Fangio brings decades of institutional knowledge and a long track record of production, but it will take more than simply a coaching change to fix what ailed the Eagles defense this season. There are glaring needs at multiple levels of the defense for general manager Howie Roseman to address either through the draft or free agency.

While the Eagles have run a scheme that was heavily influenced by Fangio for the last several seasons, there will be some changes with the author of the en vogue system now in place.

Here are three personnel needs Fangio’s arrival will bring, along with some players in the draft or free agency who could fit the bill:

Fangio’s use of dime packages with six defensive backs in known passing situations should make a coverage linebacker an important part of the offseason plan. Roseman doesn’t have a history of targeting the position early in the draft or paying linebackers big money in free agency, but there are several examples of teams finding All-Pro off-ball linebackers in the middle rounds of the draft.

Evaluating them has been the difficult part for Roseman, who has used two third-round picks at the position in the last four years. Davion Taylor, the team’s third-round selection in 2020, never developed enough to utilize the athleticism that enticed the Eagles initially, and Nakobe Dean’s second season was marred by injury.

» READ MORE: Eagles’ Howie Roseman defends his team-building philosophy at linebacker and has belief in Nakobe Dean

Even if Dean turns things around, the Eagles will need to find another off-ball linebacker to pair with him in nickel packages going into the offseason. Fangio runs a heavy amount of match-zone concepts that require linebackers to diagnose route concepts quickly and hold up in coverage, especially in dime packages when opposing offenses try to exploit the middle of the field.

As has been the case the last few years under Sean Desai and Jonathan Gannon before him, the Eagles will also use light boxes with regularity even against the run. Fangio will sometimes rotate a safety from the post into the box to fit the run from depth (more on that later), but the onus will mostly fall on the defensive line to be aggressive without overcommitting to the wrong gap. It will also fall on the off-ball linebackers to be sure tacklers when the defensive front occupies blockers trying to climb to the second level.

In the draft, Senior Bowl standout Payton Wilson of North Carolina State checks the boxes physically and has the instincts to suggest he’s capable of handling Fangio’s system, but his injury history in college complicates the fit with Dean, who also had injury concerns coming into the NFL and missed all but five games in 2023.

Clemson star Jeremiah Trotter Jr. would be an instant fan favorite because of his pedigree, but he’s more of a run-stopper than a run-and-cover linebacker. Michigan’s Junior Colson is at his best against the run as well, but he may also be capable of using his instincts and athleticism to develop in pass coverage. At 6-foot-3, 247 pounds, he also would give the Eagles more size next to the 5-11, 231-pound Dean.

The most obvious fit may be in free agency. Denver Broncos linebacker Josey Jewell is set to become a free agent this offseason and has three years experience playing for Fangio. The former Iowa Hawkeye even has experience calling Fangio’s defense as green-dot player and surpassed the 100-tackle mark in three of the last four years. Jewell, 29, figures to be a low-cost option with starting experience and has the versatility to be solid against the run while also being passable in coverage, making a potential reunion with Fangio seem logical.

» READ MORE: Five potential Eagles draft targets who improved their stock at the Senior Bowl

The Eagles were already going to need to go back to the drawing board at safety regardless of Fangio’s arrival, but the defensive coordinator’s system makes the position even more important.

The Eagles can clear about $13 million by releasing veteran safety Kevin Byard this offseason, according to overthecap.com. If they do, Reed Blankenship will be the only clear starter with his running mate unclear, at least until Sydney Brown is fully recovered from the torn ACL he suffered last month.

Although Fangio often presents the same two-high safety look before the snap by way of disguise, he’ll alternate between coverages with two deep safeties and ones that require the two players to “rotate” or “spin” into single-high looks. The emphasis on disguising things pre-snap and sometimes acting as a “robber” in the middle of the field trying to bait quarterbacks into throwing their way makes the position more complicated than it would be in some systems that give safeties fewer, more specialized responsibilities.

Even if the Eagles cut Byard and add a starting-caliber safety this offseason, Brown figures to have a role when he returns. Fangio has used three-safety packages in the past, and Brown’s ability to play with physicality and athleticism near the line of scrimmage figures to make him a good fit with two post safeties behind him in his second year.

This year’s draft doesn’t feature the type of high-end safety prospect who would command a first-round pick, although Iowa defensive back Cooper DeJean has some positional versatility. He primarily lined up at outside corner for the Hawkeyes but would match up against opposing tight ends in pivotal situations at times and could be a dynamic secondary chess piece at the next level.

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It’s also worth mentioning the two Georgia safeties in attendance at the Senior Bowl. Former Imhotep star Tykee Smith had a solid week at practice and was awarded the American team MVP. He projects as more of a nickel corner than an out-and-out post safety, but his athleticism and college production make him an intriguing option as a guy with local ties who is also represented by Klutch Sports, the same agency employed by Jalen Hurts and DeVonta Smith.

Smith’s teammate Javon Bullard fits the bill as a post safety with upside. He was voted as the best safety in Senior Bowl practices by his peers and has flashed legitimate potential operating from deep alignments as a three-year contributor to the Georgia defense. If the Eagles want to go back to the well with Georgia prospects, Bullard figures to be an enticing option potentially on Day 2.

In free agency, there is a handful of elite safeties expected to hit the market. Tampa Bay defensive back Antoine Winfield Jr. tops the list. He’s coming off an All-Pro season and is talented enough to play in any scheme, even lining up against slot receivers and tight ends in man coverage for the Buccaneers during his four-year career.

Whether it’s through an extension or the franchise tag, it’s hard to imagine the Bucs letting Winfield actually hit the market, though. Outside of the 25-year-old, two interesting options come from within the division. New York Giants defensive back Xavier McKinney is a versatile safety with a history of ball production and Washington Commanders defensive back Kamren Curl has four years of starting experience as well.

Either way, the Eagles could stand to add another dynamic player to the back end of their defense, because Fangio has proved he can utilize them accordingly.

While Fangio doesn’t use a heavy amount of straight-up man coverage, some of his match zones end up playing like man depending on the routes they face.

Each of his last few stops has featured an elite cornerback capable of crowding receivers at the line of scrimmage in press coverage. He had Jalen Ramsey last year in Miami and Patrick Surtain II before that with the Broncos.

Cornerback Darius Slay played press man for a large chunk of his 11-year career, but he hasn’t done nearly as much of it since joining the Eagles. James Bradberry, who regressed this season, isn’t well-suited for it either.

Fangio’s history would suggest that finding a cornerback with elite upside in press coverage would be a top priority, especially if the Eagles move on from Bradberry despite the dead money they’d take on by doing so.

» READ MORE: Toledo CB Quinyon Mitchell, a Senior Bowl practice standout, has a common thread to Eagles’ Nick Sirianni

Toledo prospect Quinyon Mitchell was the best cornerback at the Senior Bowl and has some ties to Nick Sirianni through his college coaches, but he was used mostly in off coverage during his career. The Eagles also don’t have a tendency to covet players from non-Power 5 schools, especially in the secondary.

Outside of Mitchell, Alabama cornerback duo Terrion Arnold and Kool-Aid McKinstry both have experience in press and have the pedigree the Eagles have targeted often the last few years. Clemson’s Nate Wiggins and Missouri’s Ennis Rakestraw Jr. are also interesting options with athleticism and film of them playing up on receivers.