The biggest thing the Eagles have to improve on defense

 

 

 

Reuben Frank

EAGLES INSIDER

A ton of football games are decided by one thing. And it’s something the Eagles haven’t been very good at lately.

Takeaways.

Over the last four seasons, the Eagles have 17, 20, 19 and 16 takeaways. They’re only the sixth team in NFL history to go four straight years with 20 or fewer takeaways.

Those 72 takeaways since the start of 2018 are fourth-fewest in the NFL, ahead of only the Raiders (62), Jaguars (62) and Lions (63).

The Eagles have actually been able to make up for the lack of takeaways to some extent. 

Consider this: Only 32 teams in NFL history have reached the postseason despite recording 20 or fewer takeaways in a season. Only the Eagles and Broncos have done it three times. And the Eagles have done it three of the last four years. 

The Eagles last year became only the seventh team in NFL history to reach the playoffs despite averaging less than one takeaway per game.

But to be the type of team that makes a deep playoff run, they’re going to have to be much better when it comes to forcing turnovers. 

Let’s just look at last year.

The Eagles went 2-5 when they didn’t force any takeaways and 7-4 when they did.  The numbers for the three previous seasons were similar. And they're similar for just about every NFL team.

So they’re nearly three times as likely to win when they force a turnover as when they don’t.

And lately they have been forcing them as infrequently as almost anybody.

Turnovers flip field position. Turnovers give the offense a short field. Turnovers change momentum of a game.

But last year the Eagles had eight overall vs. the Panthers, Saints and at home vs. Giants, and they won those games by a combined 38 points. They totaled eight takeaways in their 15 other games and went 6-9. Over their last seven road games, they forced just five takeaways. 

Of the Eagles’ 16 takeaways last year, 12 were interceptions and four were forced fumbles. Darius Slay (3) and Rodney McLeod (2) were the only Eagles with multiple interceptions. Avonte Maddox had a forced fumble and interception.  

Over the last four years, the Eagles have had 10, 11, 8 and 12 interceptions. That’s the fifth-longest streak of seasons with 12 or fewer interceptions in history. 

Who are the Eagles’ INT leaders over the last four seasons? McLeod with five, Slay with four, and Maddox, Nate Gerry, Marcus Epps, Rasul Douglas and Ronald Darby with three apiece.

That’s over a four-year span.

It’s no coincidence that the teams with the most takeaways are the best teams in football. The Cowboys, Colts, Bills, Chiefs, Buccaneers, Cards, Packers and Dolphins led the NFL in takeaways last year and were a combined 110-53.

But it’s not just that they’re good because they happened to get a lot of takeaways. They get takeaways because they have good players. 

Of those teams, the Dolphins, Bucs, Bills, Cards and Cowboys were all among the league’s sack leaders. 

Any way you look at it, pass pressure leads to turnovers. Harass the quarterback, force bad throws or fumbles, give the offense good field position, flip the game.

Which brings us to the 2022 Eagles.

The last time the Eagles ranked higher than 20th in the league in takeaways was 2017, when they were fourth with 31. And some of the biggest plays in the postseason were turnovers — Patrick Robinson’s pick-6 and Brandon Graham’s strip sack of Tom Brady.

With the defensive additions the Eagles have made — Haason Reddick, James Bradberry, Kyzir White, Jordan Davis, Nakobe Dean — the potential is there for a team that can get back to playing the sort of aggressive defense with pressure up front and solid coverage in the back end that generates takeaways.

The Eagles will be counting on double-digit sacks from Reddick, and adding Davis and Dean and getting Graham back should help generate increased pressure. And the Bradbery-Slay combo should greatly improve coverage in the back end.

And upgraded pressure and improved coverage should translate to more takeaways. Which should translate to more wins.

Sounds simple. Sounds easy. And for the first time since the Super Bowl season, the Eagles just might actually have the players to make it happen.

https://www.nbcsports.com/philadelphia/eagles/eagles-defense-turnovers-james-bradberry-kyzir-white-nakobe-dean

They were in the top 10 for points allowed last year. Get to the middle of the pack in takeaways AND sacks and the defense will be called one of the best in the league. 

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Turnovers flip field position. Turnovers give the offense a short field. Turnovers change momentum of a game.

Yes ... turnovers help the offense. But likewise, an offense that can build a lead early puts a defense in better position to create turnovers / generate a pass rush.