The Eagles defense has got to be able to get to the quarterback without relying heavily on the blitz. They must do it despite having very little coaching experience on defense.
I don't think interim defensive coordinator Sean McDermott has the experience to run as many blitzes as Jim Johnson.
If they get caught bltizing it could mean big plays that the Birds can't afford to surrender. There's an to designing blitzes to run again certain offenses and there's a skill to calling them at the right time.
if you have the wrong bltiz called at the wrong time, you've got a disaster on your hands. Good bltizing keeps the offense guessing and can disguise weaknesses in the defense.
I'm sure Andy Reid is not going to let McDermott run as many blitzes as Johnson was accustomed to running.
They've got to be able to get pressure on the quarterback from their front four without blitzing. That means the play of the front four must improve.
It's another reason why they should have a more experienced defensive line coach than Rory Seagrest who was a poor special teams coach a year ago.
I've seen Reid doing a lot of the coaching of this group during the OTA's, but I would like to see them get a better defensive line coach than Segrest a guy who doesn't have much of a resume.
If Johnson were there I wouldn't have a problem with Segrest but without Johnson, I don't have confidence that he can do the job.
Think about how little experience they have on the defensive side of the ball with McDermott, Segrest and second-year linebacker coach Bill Shuey. I can't help but believe that Johnson will be missed greatly.
Former Cowboys defensive coordinator Brian Stewart, who is the team's assistant to the defense, was brought in to give them more experience but he will be learning the defense. You can't help a great deal when you're learning the defense.
I think Reid could wind up spreading himself too thin, if the defense starts struggling. Who can McDermott turn to on the staff?
The key time to observe this group will be when the defense struggles. Think also about how young the defense is. They don't have too many old reassuring voices back there to keep everybody on the same page.
Back to the defensive line, I talked previously about Victor Abiamiri and how the Birds need him to develop. He's been here long enough to know exactly what he's doing. They need some sacks and quarterback pressures from him, right now.
Of course they also need a big year from their only Pro Bowler on the defensive line, Trent Cole. He received a lot of attention a year ago, but he's got to come on strong with pressures and sacks.
If nobody else steps up, the Birds may have to move Cole around to get some consistent pressure on the quarerback without blitzing. Moving him around will make it harder for teams to double-team him.
Veteran Darren Howard did an outstanding job for the Birds a year ago, He got his nine sacks which led the team, primarily as a pass rushing defensive tackle in nickel situations. A number of those sacks were on bltizes. He may not get those opportunities this year without Johnson calling the defenses.
The starting defensive tackles, Mike Patterson and Brodrick Bunkley need to step up in the pass rushing department. Patterson is already a good pass rusher from the spot, but Bunkley has plenty of room to improve.
