Eagles roster: Reed Blankenship, Azeez Olujari, Ty Robinson underrated on Philadelphia

Dynasties in sports activities are humorous issues.

Again on the flip of the millennium, it appeared for all of the world that the “Biggest Present on Turf” St. Louis Rams could be the NFL’s subsequent large factor with their win over the Tennessee Titans in Tremendous Bowl XXXIV on January 30, 2000, and their return to the massive sport two seasons later. Sadly for them, the Rams bumped into an sudden two-touchdown underdog within the New England Patriots, and that Tom Brady man.

With that, the NFL’s future turned on its head for the subsequent twenty years.

Everyone knows that on February 9, 2025, the Kansas Metropolis Chiefs had been on the precipice of changing into the primary staff to win three straight NFL championships because the 1965-1967 Inexperienced Bay Packers. Then, they received themselves bombed by the Eagles, particularly Vic Fangio’s protection — a unit that pressured Patrick Mahomes ceaselessly with out blitzing as soon as.

The 40-22 closing rating was under no circumstances indicative of how the Eagles beat up on the Chiefs in Tremendous Bowl LIX — Kansas Metropolis scored two touchdowns a 1:06 late fourth-quarter stretch, and you might take the 40-6 rating earlier than them because the true measure of Philly’s dominance.

So, possibly these Eagles are the NFL’s subsequent dynasty? On paper, the prospects look good.

In Howie Roseman, the franchise has a normal supervisor so adept, different GMs get nervous when his identify pops up on the Caller ID. In Nick Sirianni, there’s a head coach who has discovered to steadiness his prickliness with the necessity to relate to individuals in significant methods. And in defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, there’s one of the best and most necessary assistant coach within the league.

Quarterback Jalen Hurts has transcended lots of the early bumps that outlined his profession for some time. And whereas regression to the imply tells us that we in all probability can’t anticipate one other historic season just like the Eagles received out of Saquon Barkley in 2024, it actually helps that Barkley can be operating as soon as once more behind the NFL’s greatest offensive line.

The protection is getting youthful… and fairly presumably higher. Final season, it was linebacker Zach Baun who was the first beneficiary of Fangio’s genius. Now, Fangio has two distinguished and interesting instruments to play with in first-round linebacker Jihaad Campbell…

…and second-round security Andrew Mukuba.

If these Eagles are to change into the gold commonplace for the NFL within the 2025 season and past, listed here are three guys who will assist them do it. Within the continuation of our “Hidden Gems” sequence, we take a deep dive on one underrated veteran, one underrated free-agent signing, and one underrated draft choose.

Fly, Eagles, Fly? It actually appears that method.

Underrated Eagles veteran: Security Reed Blankenship

Center Tennessee State has been a little bit of an unheralded Defensive Again College lately, contemplating that each Kevin Byard and Charvarius Ward went there. The most recent on this line of Blue Raiders DBs who’ve gone on to NFL success is Reed Blankenship, the 2022 undrafted free agent who spent his first NFL season as a job participant combating for time on the sector, his second as a considerably overwhelmed starter in protection, and his third as one of many glue guys in an Eagles protection that did probably the most to current Philadelphia with its second Tremendous Bowl championship.

In 2024, Blankenship thrived beneath Vic Fangio as so a lot of Fangio’s gamers did. He allowed 39 catches on 48 targets for 423 yards, 144 yards after the catch, one landing, 4 interceptions, two cross breakups, and an opponent passer ranking of 75.6. Blankenship additionally had 77 solo tackles and 20 stops, but it surely was his protection that basically stood out for the primary time. Again and again final season, Blenkenship’s capability to learn quarterback intentions had him in the fitting place to come back diving in for interceptions that these quarterbacks didn’t anticipate.

“It’s superb how all three of his picks have appeared the identical,” Fangio mentioned of Blankenship final November, again when Blankenship had simply three interceptions. “He’s achieved a very good job. He quarterbacks the secondary, leads the communication between them and the linebackers. So, he’s very, very worthwhile.”

Priceless on the sector, and a cut price as properly. Blankenship signed a one-year, $3.575 million contract extension earlier than the 2024 season which retains him on the roster via 2025. With C.J. Gardner-Johnson off to Houston within the Kenyon Inexperienced deal, and second-round choose Andrew Mukuba studying Fangio’s protection, it’ll be as much as Blankenship greater than ever to carry issues collectively within the deep third.

Which he has discovered to do with authority.

Underrated Eagles free-agent signing: EDGE Azeez Ojulari

The latest commerce of edge-rusher Bryce Huff to the San Francisco 49ers displays that even when the Eagles get a free-agent signing incorrect, they’re usually good sufficient to punt on the factor as soon as the match isn’t apparent, and transfer on to the subsequent. That appears apparent, however extra NFL groups than not will go together with the sunk-cost fallacy and maintain on to their errors once they actually shouldn’t.

With that commerce, Brandon Graham’s retirement, and Josh Sweat becoming a member of the Arizona Cardinals on a reasonably large contract, the thought is for that edge group to get youthful and extra athletic. There are already edge-rushers with a ton of potential — Nolan Smith and Jalyx Hunt are the names to know there — and the staff added some actual burst within the individual of former New York Giants second-round choose Azeez Ojulari with a one-year, $3 million contract. Not a nasty deal for a man who had seven sacks and 22 whole pressures final season on simply 196 pass-rushing snaps.

Ojulari had his greatest season in 2021, his rookie marketing campaign, when he totaled 10 sacks and 42 whole pressures. Accidents affected his potential in 2022 and 2023, and by 2024, he was the odd man out behind Kayvon Thibodeaux and Brian Burns. However when Thibodeaux suffered a wrist harm in Week 5, Ojulari received his shot, and he made probably the most of it.

Ojulari made my Midseason All-Underrated Protection because of this. At 6’3” and 240 kilos, Ojulari wins extra with pace and the flexibility to leap gaps than with pure energy, however he can work his quickness into leverage when it’s wanted.

Sadly, Ojulari suffered a toe harm in November that put him on injured reserve, and he didn’t play after Week 12. The harm historical past is why he was accessible on a lowball one-year deal, but when he can keep wholesome, Ojulari has quite a bit so as to add to Philly’s cross rush. He’s confirmed that already.

“We clearly know him properly with us taking part in the Giants twice every season,” Roseman mentioned of Ojulari in late March. “He performed at Georgia, and we’ve received a bunch of fellows from there who’ve performed properly for us. Azeez matches in immediately. He’s received the flexibility to hurry the passer, he has a number of the bodily and intangible traits that we search for, and we’re excited to convey him right here and hopefully assist him play his greatest soccer.”

Underrated Eagles draft choose: DI Ty Robinson

In the event you consider draft prospects from 12 months to 12 months, there are all the time these guys whose draft positions drastically undersell their collegiate efficiency and NFL potential. A kind of prospects within the 2025 class for me was unquestionably Nebraska’s Ty Robinson, who put up six sacks, 41 whole pressures, 25 solo tackles, 28 stops, and 7 tackles for loss in his sixth season with the Cornhuskers. Robinson then went to the scouting mix and placed on an athletic present, which made me surprise all of the extra why and the way he lasted all the best way to the 111th total choose within the fourth spherical, which is the place the Eagles completely stole him.

Robinson measured 6’ 5⅛” and 288 kilos on the mix; he performed with extra of a 300-pound body, and he did nearly every little thing from nearly each hole.

Two sacks and 13 whole pressures got here from Robinson’s 204 pass-rushing snaps at nostril sort out.
4 sacks and 18 whole pressures got here from Robinson’s 240 pass-rushing snaps at three-tech defensive sort out.
No sacks and 9 whole pressures got here from Robinson’s 154 snaps as an edge defender.

Possibly it was Robinson’s age (he turned 24 on Could 3) that had him dropping on this draft; maybe it was the all-time nature of the inside defensive lineman class. Or it may very well be that some NFL groups didn’t see the match with Robinson’s explicit dimension standards. However the Eagles, who want to exchange Milton Williams, in all probability noticed Robinson as a like-as-like match. When Williams got here out of Louisiana Tech within the 2021 draft, he was 6’3” and 284 kilos — one other hybrid defender who completely demolished the mix. If the Eagles noticed the similarities… properly, I might not disagree. The Eagles put Williams extra at three-tech than wherever else (90% of his snaps final season), and Robinson may discover himself with equally efficient placement.

“I imply, it doesn’t take lengthy to placed on the tape to love Ty Robinson,” Roseman mentioned of his latest defensive lineman. “He’s received quickness, he can work edges, he’s sturdy along with his fingers, he’s received nice elite character. He’s a Philly form of participant, so once more, he was a man that we actually had been focusing on yesterday at 96. We wakened and was actually hoping that he was there at our choose, and that was one we weren’t contemplating buying and selling again from.”

So, the Eagles received their man on this case, and this may very well be yet one more occasion by which Howie received it proper, and everybody else can be left to surprise how.