On paper, the Philadelphia Eagles have a stacked roster that is poised to repeat as Super Bowl champions if everyone develops into the roles they are supposed to play on the team. That doesn’t mean there aren’t some flaws with the roster.
Bleacher Report writer Alex Ballentine went through all 32 teams’ cap space and what their most significant needs are. Ballentine had the Eagles with $31.1 million in cap space, with the interior defensive line being the team’s biggest need. The biggest question being asked is whether they can reload the defensive line after the losses during the offseason.
“Josh Sweat (16), Milton Williams (12) and Brandon Graham (11) were second, fourth and fifth on the team in pressures, respectively, per Pro Football Reference.
Sweat and Williams both left in free agency. Graham retired. Bryce Huff, who was sixth on the team in pressures, was traded to the San Francisco 49ers.
There are potential answers on the roster. Jalyx Hunt will be asked to step into a bigger role in his second season. The Eagles might have gotten big bargains in Azeez Ojulari and Josh Uche in free agency.
Having Jalen Carter is going to help. He’s trending toward becoming the most disruptive interior defender in the league. Nolan Smith also put together a promising age-23 season.
But the best Eagles teams in the Howie Roseman era have had deep pass-rushing groups. There’s work to be done to develop the same thing this season.”
Are the Eagles solid on the defensive line in 2025?
The problem is there is a lot of youth on the line and because most of them are unproven, it’s hard to tell what kind of defensive line this will be in Philly. Everyone knows that Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis are going to be great, but what about the rest?
Smith was second on the team in sacks with 6.5 and looked to be the perfect replacement for Sweat. Hunt seems like the logical choice to step in as the other starting edge rusher, given his experience in Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio’s defense.
New York Giants fans will be the first to say that if Ojulari would have just stayed healthy, he could have been one of the best. He is quick off the edge and effective, but durability has been his biggest flaw.
Uche had one great season in 2022 with his 11.5 sacks, but has not been able to match even close to that since. He may not quite be starting material, but he’s a great depth player who can rotate in and help out.
Knowing how Roseman has gone about this offseason, he’s not looking to make a move right now. He’s going to let training camp play out and see what he has in his young guys.
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The unknown is always the scariest part and that’s how most in the media feel. Eagles fans have learned to trust the process with Roseman and let him do what he does best: build great rosters.