Brandon Brooks says Andre Dillard is up to 335 pounds

[UK_EaglesFan89]

Brandon Brooks says Andre Dillard is up to 335 pounds

 When we last saw Andre Dillard in January, the Eagles’ offensive lineman had just finished his rookie season and

 vowed to hit the weight room in his first NFL offseason in anticipation of becoming a starter. 

 

Apparently, he hit the weight room hard. 

Brandon Brooks, a day after his Achilles surgery, appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Quick Slants on Friday and said Dillard now weighs 335 pounds!

None of that college body, that noodle body, none of that,” Brooks said. "He’s been hitting the weights, man, getting strong. I tried to push him every day. You know how it is playing O-line, there’s no excuses, you gotta get it done.

For reference, Dillard is listed at 315 pounds and said he was 320 at the end of last season. He spent most of his rookie year at 320 pounds but felt like he changed the composition of his body. In the five months since the end of the season, Dillard has been working on his body even more. 

That’s a good sign for the Eagles, who will be relying on Dillard to take over Jason Peters’ vacated left tackle spot. Peters is still available on the free agent market but the Eagles are committed to going forward with Dillard, their first-round pick from 2019. Earlier this offseason, Jason Kelce said Dillard had all the athleticism necessary to be a good tackle but just needed to get stronger. It sounds like Dillard has. 

"I’m sure he has a bar he wants to reach but I want it even higher,” Brooks said. "Every time I see him, I’m going to push him to make sure. He may never be JP, but s— he’ll be close. I can tell you that as long as we keep progressing the way he’s going. He’s really hitting it hard.”

Brooks said the offensive line got together this offseason and the guys have been helping Dillard and some of the younger players focus on the mental aspect of NFL football. Once the physical stuff is down, the mental stuff is what you have to stay after, Brooks said. He’s been pushing his younger teammate. 

"As a matter of fact,” Brooks said, "the day I tore my Achilles, I was pushing him because, s— I’m about to be 31, I’m beating him in sprints and it’s like, ‘Nah, Dre, you’re 22 years old, you should be smoking me every time.’” 

With the injury to Brooks this week, the Eagles will likely be relying on two young players on their offensive line. While Dillard is expected to play left tackle, third-year player Matt Pryor is the front-runner to take over for Brooks at right guard. 

Pryor started the playoff game against the Seahawks for Brooks in January. It would be unfair to expect Pryor to play at the Pro Bowl level Brooks has established, but that’s not what the Eagles are asking of him. 

"I had a conversation with [Pryor] Monday after I got the MRI to confirm (the Achilles tear),” Brooks said. “‘Hey man, you’re going to have to step up. Don’t look to be me. Look to be you. Whatever that takes for you to get ready from a mental standpoint, a physical standpoint, I’m here for you. Anything you need, I’m willing to help. When you get out there, do what you do.’ I have a whole bunch of faith in him.”

https://www.nbcsports.com/philadelphia/eagles/brandon-brooks-says-andre-dillard-335-pounds

I mean that's an encouraging start...

[Miami]

This could be very good news if he can keep his athleticism and quickness at the new weight.  A franchise LT.

[jsb235]

If nothing else, the fact that Brooks spoke highly of his offseason progress means a lot. After months of hearing rumors about this kid, it's nice that someone stood up and said something positive.

Obviously his biggest problem last year was getting pushed around, and if he has added 20 pounds of muscle, he is going to be pretty tough to beat.

[PoconoDon]

I hope he truly is one of those rare exceptions to the PAC-12 lack of physicality problem. The Eagles need him to be.

It sound like he's trying hard, which is the best first step he could take.

Stay the course young man.

[mrmagoo]

Aah, the annual 15 lbs of muscle article.

[EricAllenPick6]

12 hours ago, mrmagoo said:

Aah, the annual 15 lbs of muscle article.

Beat me to it.  Seems a little early for "[Underachieving player] is in the best shape of their life" articles.  

Also, I hope he's been hitting the weight room, and this is not just an extra 15 pounds of COVID-related pizza orders and snacking.  Stay away from the Oreos, Andre!

[jsb235]

22 minutes ago, EricAllenPick6 said:

Beat me to it.  Seems a little early for "[Underachieving player] is in the best shape of their life" articles.  

Also, I hope he's been hitting the weight room, and this is not just an extra 15 pounds of COVID-related pizza orders and snacking.  Stay away from the Oreos, Andre!

The fact that it is Brooks saying it and not a GM or agent makes this a little different. Brooks has no reason to put this out there if it wasn't true.

Also, he wasn't that bad last year. Certainly he looked much better than Vaitai did at any point in his career, and we saw how much the NFL values Vaitai. So as long as Dillard doesn't get worse, we should be fine with him in there. And if he does add some weight/strength, he might end up being really good.