Super Bowl champions ready to fly once again, but can they repeat?
Let’s get the facts out first: the last time a NFC team won back-to-back Super Bowl titles was in 1992 and 1993, when the Dallas Cowboys beat the Buffalo Bills both years.
No NFC team has even gotten to back-to-back Super Bowls since 2013-14 when the Seattle Seahawks beat the Denver Broncos in ’13, but lost to the New England Patriots in ’14.
If the Philadelphia Eagles are going to end those droughts for the NFC they are going to have to do it with a new-look defense.
Offensively, the Eagles will look pretty much the same as the team that won Super Bowl LIX. Jalen Hurts is at quarterback, Saquon Barkley is at running back, A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith are at wide receiver and that massive offensive line in just as massive.
It’s the other side of the ball that is going to look different. Gone from that 2024 defense are lineman Milton Williams (New England), edge rusher Josh Sweat (Arizona), edge rusher Brandon Graham (retired), cornerback Darius Slay (Pittsburgh) and safety C.J. Gardner Johnson (Houston). Also linebacker Nakobe Dean is expected to begin the season on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list.
That’s five starters and a key veteran backup and leader who won’t be out there when the Eagles open the regular season Thursday, Sept. 4 against the Dallas Cowboys.
Fangio wants to see what new Birds can do
“Yeah, we have a lot of battles going on for starting jobs in the different packages,’’ Defensive Coordinator Vic Fangio said. “We got some good players battling for it and it will be interesting. If you ask me to predict who’s winning those jobs right now, it’s a guess and hopefully we’ll get ’em enough practice time and rep time that it will sort itself out.’’
Moro Ojomo steps in to replace Williams up front. Ojomo, a seventh-round pick out of Texas in 2023, joins stalwarts Jordan Davis and Jalen Carter in the team’s 3-4 scheme.
“I think Mo did a good job last year in the reps he got,’’ Fangio said. “His reps will kick up this year. I think Milton’s reps will be divided up between him and Jordan playing more. I’m very happy with Mo, was happy with him last year and I expect him to play good for us.’’
First-round draft pick Jihaad Campbell, who is back on the field sooner than expected after a shoulder injury dropped his stock in the draft, could see a lot of time in place of Dean at linebacker. All-Pro Zach Baun returns at the other linebacker spot.
“It was good to see him out there. I wasn’t expecting him out there,’’ Fangio said of Campbell when training camp opened. “The trainers had been telling me all spring that it would be at some point in August when he’d be out there. (Jokingly) So I’m learning that our trainers like to understate and overachieve so they look good. But it was good to get him out there. and he’s progressing.’’
Cooper DeJean moves into new role
The secondary, sans Slay and Gardner-Johnson, has some moving parts. Cooper DeJean, who had a good rookie season capped off by a pick-six in the Super Bowl against Patrick Mahomes, is going to start. It’s just a matter of if he replaces Slay at corner opposite Quinyon Mitchell or if hereplaces Gardner-Johnson at safety. Last year DeJean played primarily nickel corner.
“I mean the primary motive is we’d like to have him be part of our base package and I do believe he can play safety,’’ Fangio said. “It’s new for him so we’re going to give him some work there. Then you’ll see days in the base where he’ll play some corner, so it’s going to be an evolution and a lot of it will depend upon how well we do at those positions with the other guys. So we’ll make the best decision for the team based upon. It’s not only how he’s doing, it’s going to be determined by how everybody’s doing. That’s safety and corner.”
Healthy Sydney Brown helps
Another player who will get a look at safety, if in fact DeJean is a corner, will be Sydney Brown. The third-year player out of Illinois, has battled nagging injuries his first two years.
“You’ve just got to go out there and play good. I mean so much of the safety position is just like ILB where instincts and play recognition play a major part in how good you are and he just needs a lot of reps. He didn’t start practicing last year until October and at that point you’re in game weeks where you don’t practice a whole lot, you don’t have a lot of reps. So he didn’t have a great opportunity last year because of his injury and hopefully now we’ll see exactly what he can do.’’
And whether the Eagles new-look defense can take them back to the Super Bowl.
