Defense is an area where the Eagles, both under the late Jim Johnson and second-year defensive coordinator Sean McDermott, like to rotate players. Often the depth on the defensive line is as important as the starters, given how many substitutions the Eagles make in any given game.
Yet there are essentially four types of defensive players — full-time starters, contributors who play most of the time, situational players and backups. The fabulous data compiled by Pro Football Focus can give us a better read on those divisions as they shake out in the early part of the season.
Let’s dive into the numbers…