Earlier this week I posted an article that broke down the Eagles offensive output this past season and graded it by position. The offense is done, so now is time under the microscope for the defense and special teams. This is the “bend and not break” Eagles defense we saw all year. Teams could march down the field at times, but weren’t always able to punch it in for 6. Here’s what I saw, and a “report card” if you will, for the defense and kicking/return game.

Defense:

Defensive Line
The starting front 4 for the Eagles is a young group for the most part, but without depth. It wouldn’t shock me if they beefed up in the draft by grabbing another tackle. But as for what happened in 2007, let’s look at that starting front 4; the front line of attack for this defense. Trent Cole was an absolute blossoming star on the end; the way his motor keeps going play after play, wearing down the offensive lineman, he should push and spin his way to a pro bowl spot next year. But you can’t be successful with a 4 man rush (or defending the run) when there’s 1 player that worked hard for 16 games; just Cole. Two of the players, right in the middle, had good years that had sparks of life here and there but ultimately came to life towards the end of the year. Bunkley, a middle of the pack 1st round pick, started to look like the guy the Eagles expected him to be: tough on the run, get to the quarterback and disrupt the offense in general. He certainly showed he has the gritty toughness this year to continue to evolve into something special; it gave fans and coaches a great amount of hope looking to next year. Young tackle Mike Patterson showed similar showings of star play now and then, but like Bunkley, was not a stud for 16 games and instead, showed signs of life for the future. However, the story gets much more disappointing as you move to the other end of the line, that disappointment is named Jevon Kearse. The former Titans star was off and on with injury but ultimately ended the season sitting on the bench. Kearse is officially a “has been”; the flash and sheer quickness to get around the edge or break through the line he had when he came out of Florida is now gone. I give the Eagles credit for going out and signing the star-at-the-time, but it never worked out it a midnight green jersey. The line was effective, at times. They never controlled a game, unless it was around their own goal line. Trent Cole sacked quarterbacks, but he and his line mates, never got pressure in some big games (Dallas, Seattle) when it mattered. It was and up and down year, mirroring the Eagles season as a whole. The depth chart doesn’t give the coaches much hope either. Montae Reagor and Darren Howard never saw the playing field, and for good reason. Juqua Thomas and Lajuan Ramsey are average at best. Overall, the front line for the Eagles wasn’t a gaping hole of a problem this past year, they were o.k. But Trent Cole needs more help getting to that quarterback and stuffing the run. You have to live through growing pains of young players, and we as fans did last year with Patterson and Bunkley, and are now seeing true signs of good NFL players. Through the draft or free agency, the team should reload the depth chart and find a solid replacement for the almost certain departure of Kearse.

GRADE: B-

Linebacker
The linebacking crew, and Eagles nation as a whole, was sent into a small state of shock in preseason with the cut of Jeremiah Trotter. So, instead of a 31 year old former pro bowler, we traded for Takeo Spikes: a 31 year old former pro bowler. Now, give Spikes credit, it did seem like he could run down plays more effectively than Trotter could at this point in their respective careers. So, let’s begin with Spikes. He wasn’t a bust, but at the same time, he was far from being the stud in the line backing core that we wanted. On many plays it looked like he would often read the play wrong and be late to the action. He recorded a lot of tackles, but they were assisted: he wasn’t often the first one to react and make the play. He overran screen plays and outside runs, and the emergence of Stewart Bradley certainly doesn’t help his future here. It sounds like I’m ripping into Spikes, and while I’m not (he had a good season), it wasn’t great and he started to look his age towards the end of the year. The middle spot that Trotter left open was taken by emerging star Omar Gaither. Try these starting stats out: 102 tackles, 1 forced fumble, and 1 interception. He was fast to the ball, made solid wrap up tackles, and when I think about it, rarely made a costly mistake. His learning progression will continue only in a very positive way; his future in the middle for the Eagles looks very good. Similarly, on the outside, Chris Gocong got better and better as the season went on. He started off looking a bit out of place, fans and coaches were hoping we didn’t have another Matt McCoy on our hands. But he learned his trade quickly and began to attack the line and made plays all over the field. He recorded his first sack this year and racked up over 65 tackles too. Stewart Bradley, as noted before, is a bright young start in his own right and was solid with Spikes out of the lineup in December. A possible starting crew of Gocong-Gaither-Bradley is extremely exciting for this defense.

GRADE: B

Secondary
Let’s start out with safety because that’s where the most talk is, and rightly so. Brian Dawkins, Eagles pro bowler, team leader, and future Hall of Famer, had a downright disappointing season. Fans I’ve talked to don’t want to admit it, but when you watch the games this past year its blatently apparent he wasn’t the same dominant force in the back of the defense he used to be. I’m not saying he can’t have a rebound year next year, here’s to hoping he does, but he was injured a lot this past season and when he wasn’t he just wasn’t up to speed, especially playing the pass. Quintin Mikell was extremely impressive in the starts he received due to injures to Considine and Dawkins. In his shortened amount of starts he piled up 74 tackles, 1 interception, 1 sack, and 1 forced fumble. Not too shabby. J.R. Reed was also a hard hitting force later in the season after the Eagles brought him back from being cut. All in all for the safety position it comes down to one underlying thing: we’re thin at this spot. The Eagles have an aging star in Dawkins and not much on the depth charts. They need to use free agency, but more importantly, the NFL draft (I would say the first or second round) to acquire a stud safety that is much needed for this defense. At cornerback, both Sheldon Brown and Lito Sheppard were like light switches: they were off and on. I apoligize for the lame metaphor but what else can you say. Take Sheppard for example: in starts against the Giants and Seahawks he was getting picked apart by the opposition. When he gave too much space to the receiver, he got beat in the open field. When he played up, they ran right by him; he always seemed to be a step behind the receiver. Then, just a week after that Giants game, he absolutely shut down a top receiver in Terrell Owens of the Cowboys. He looked terrific, giving Owens nothing in the first 5 yards and no room for plays anywhere on the field. Lito was either really good, or not the same player at all. The same goes for the other corner, Sheldon Brown. Everyone remembers the hit he laid on Reggie Bush last postseason, and he provided a few more highlight reel pops this year too. The man can certainly hit. But while he piled up almost 70 tackles, like Lito, he too was often beaten on many plays. This may be another position the Eagles want to address in the draft.

GRADE: C+

Special Teams

(I’m going to grade field goal kicking and punting; this is obviously putting the return and coverage game to the back burner even though that was a thorn in the Eagles side. Let’s get a receiver who’s also a return man in the draft, huh?)

Field Goals
One player you never thought would truly fall off in the midst of such a crazy season was kicker David Akers. But at age 33 and looking at the season he just had, is it possible he’s losing his leg a little bit? The once reliable Akers was anything but that in 2007. Most kickers in the NFL can kick the chip shots and Akers did that. But he was a paltry 1 for 6 from 40-49 yards out, and just 1 of 4 from beyond 50 yards. That’s not the Akers we have come to know and love; quite the down year for him.

GRADE: C

Punting
We all remember being pretty excited when Sav Rocca, the Australian Rules League kicker, beat out Dirk Johnson for the starting job. While he did a pretty good job, he wasn’t amazingly better than what Johnson did in any punting category. His average was 42.0 yards per punt and landed 24 inside the 20; his long was 65. I think most Eagles fans, unrealistically, thought we’d have a few more of the 65 yarders and less of the 42 yarders. All in all, expect another punter to be brought in for another job competition this upcoming summer.

GRADE: B

So, here’s all the grades:

Offense
Quarterback: C
Running Back: A
Receiver/TE: C+
Offensive Line: B

Complete Eagles Offense … C+

Defense
Defensive Line: B-
Linebacker: B
Secondary: C+

Complete Eagles Defense … B

Special Teams
Kicking: C
Punting: B

Complete Eagles Special Teams … C+

2007 EAGLES FINAL GRADE: B-

So, with a B and two C+ grades, the 2007 squad gets a final grade of a B-. A year that was unpredictable as it was frustrating. A team that put up 3 points in a game is the same team that put up 56 points in a game. A team that lost to Dallas 38-17 at home, goes on the road to shut Dallas down 10-6. McNabb started so very slow and off but recovered for a promising finish. Westbrook continued to amaze, and set 2 franchise records. What will the future hold? Nobody knows. But the play of the young guys on this team certainly should give the fan base and coaching staff hope, coupled with McNabb’s resurgence, they’ve got to feel this should be a playoff team again next season.