Eagles LB Nakobe Dean ‘always wants to be the thumper.’ Can he play a prominent role?

Long before Devin White signed with the Eagles in March, he considered himself a fan of Nakobe Dean.

White, who is three years older than Dean, tried to recruit him to LSU before he committed to Georgia. There are no lingering hard feelings. While the inside linebackers have only been teammates for the last five months, White said he has always viewed Dean as his “little brother,” serving as a mentor to the 23-year-old on and off the field.

Now, suited up in the same uniform first time in their careers, White gets to experience Dean’s style of play firsthand.

“Man, the guy flies around,” White said of Dean after practice Saturday. “He’s very physical on contact. He always wants to be the thumper. The hammer and not the nail. So I really like that about him. Just a relentless mindset of wanting to go out there and kill.”

Dean has flashed with his physicality throughout camp and worked to show he has rebounded from the foot injury that plagued his 2023 season. He separated himself with his play over the past week in particular, in the Eagles’ preseason game against the New England Patriots on Thursday and their practice two days later.

The 5-foot-11, 231-pound Dean was Pro Football Focus’ highest-graded player overall in Thursday’s preseason game. He finished the night with a team-high five tackles, including three stops, which PFF defines as a tackle that constitutes a “failure” for the offense. Two of those tackles were for 3 yards, and the third was for no gain.

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

Before practice on Saturday, head coach Nick Sirianni lauded Dean’s performance in the second preseason game. He called attention to one play in particular, in which the third-year inside linebacker was responsible for blitzing quarterback Drake Maye. Running back Kevin Harris picked up Dean in pass protection, giving Maye time to connect with wide receiver Ja’Lynn Polk in the flat.

Polk evaded attempted tackles from James Bradberry and Jeremiah Trotter Jr. Dean saved the day, hustling downfield to bring the receiver to the ground for a 6-yard gain.

“We had a couple missed tackles on the play, and he’s 4 yards in the backfield and retraces and makes a really good tackle,” Sirianni said. “Sometimes what happens on missed tackles is it turns into an explosive [play]. Well, that didn’t because of the relentless effort of Nakobe.

“His fundamentals, his tackling, his block destruction, and his effort on his plays is really where you’re able to see his talent.”

That effort and physicality carried over to practice on Saturday. Early in the seven-on-seven period, Dean delivered a pad-popping thud to running back Will Shipley on a pass over the middle of the field while in coverage.

Dean said that this camp has been more physical for the entire team than his previous two. Inside linebackers coach Bobby King has emphasized block destruction and physicality against guards with his players. Dean has heeded that overall guidance.

“We don’t get the chance to tackle much in camp,” Dean said. “So you try to thud as much as you can. And in the past years, it feels like I just kind of two-hand touch. But I want to thud.”

Dean said after the Patriots game that he’s “been in a groove” throughout camp aside from one bad day — the public practice at Lincoln Financial Field on Aug. 1. Still, he doesn’t appear to be a front-runner to win either of the starting inside linebacker jobs come Week 1. Dean mostly has played with the second-team defense alongside Trotter, while White and Zack Baun take the majority of the first-team reps.

» READ MORE: Vic Fangio already has the Eagles defense looking quick, deadly, and exciting

“Of course, I want to play,” Dean said. “And I want to be the first one out there that plays. But of course, I know I can’t control that. The only thing I can control is what I come out here and do every day and work hard and continue to get better. I feel like I’ve had the type of camp that I’m supposed to have.”

In November, Dean was diagnosed with a Lisfranc left foot sprain that required surgery and prematurely ended his season. One walking boot and months of rehab later, Dean said he finally made it through the recovery process about halfway through the summer. That time spent sidelined gave him an appreciation for his return.

“It was amazing to get back on the field and just play football,” Dean said. “The injury that I had, it was hard. It was long. I didn’t have a day off. I didn’t have an offseason. It was at least five days a week all the way up until training camp started as far as getting this foot right and getting it better.”

That’s the operative word for Dean — “better.” As he pushes for a prominent role in Vic Fangio’s defense, Dean is determined to show that he’s an improved player compared to the one he was prior to his injury.

“I’m not back,” he said. “I’m better.”