Tim McManus covers the Philadelphia Eagles for ESPN. He joined ESPN in 2016 after covering the Eagles for Philadelphia Magazine's Birds 24/7, a site he helped create, since 2010. You can follow him on Twitter @Tim_McManus.
If there's a play that typifies the surprise season the Philadelphia Eagles defense is having, it came midway through the fourth quarter of Sunday's game against the Baltimore Ravens when a 21-year-old rookie upended The King.
Facing a 3-and-11 and his team down two scores, quarterback Lamar Jackson escaped pressure and flicked a pass into the flat for the 247-pound Derrick Henry, who is usually the one doling out the punishment. Not this time. Rookie corner Cooper DeJean weighs 50 pounds less than Henry but had a head of steam as Henry hauled in the pass and started to turn upfield. DeJean went low, lifted Henry off the ground with a driving form tackle, and put Henry on his back for a game-defining stop.
"If you missed that, go replay your TV. That s--- was crazy," said standout defensive tackle Jalen Carter. "That was a good-a-- hit from my boy."
There was optimism heading into the year that a stumbling defense would stabilize with the addition of one of the top defensive coordinators in the business in Vic Fangio. But there was much to overcome. The Eagles had one of the league's worst units in 2023. They ranked 31 in pass defense and 30 in points allowed, to name a couple. Meanwhile, two of their best players on that squad in Fletcher Cox (retirement) and Haason Reddick (trade) were not returning.
The transformation has been sudden. Philadelphia currently ranks No. 1 in overall defense (283 yards per game), third in passing defense (178 ypg) and third-down efficiency (33%) and fourth in points per game (18.2). Playing a sound and physical brand of football, Fangio's group has helped lift the Eagles to a 10-2 record and into the realm of title contenders. The Eagles are +500 to win the Super Bowl per ESPN BET, which is tied for the second-best odds with the Buffalo Bills and Kansas City Chiefs behind only the Detroit Lions (+250).
"This is a good defense," said linebacker Zack Baun. "We hold our heads high. And I think we've earned the right to have some confidence going into any game."
There are a number of factors fueling the turnaround. Baun is a good place to start. He signed a one-year, $1.6 million contract this offseason to be a rotational edge rusher/special teams ace. But Fangio saw his potential at inside linebacker and Baun has proven him right. He ranks fourth in the NFL in tackles (118) and is tied for first in forced fumbles (4).
The elevated play of former Georgia teammates in linebacker Nakobe Dean, edge rusher Nolan Smith Jr. and defensive tackles Jordan Davis and Carter has also been key. Carter is establishing himself as one of the best defensive linemen in football and commands almost constant double-teams, creating opportunities for the rest of the front.
The story of the defense cannot be told without emphasizing the play of rookie cornerbacks Quinyon Mitchell and DeJean. Mitchell is already earning the reputation as a shutdown corner. He leads the team in passes defensed (10) and is second in the league in forced incompletions (14). DeJean (6 passes defensed, 35 tackles) solidified the secondary when he was inserted into the starting lineup following their Week 5 bye. The defense's performance improved dramatically from Week 6 on, and DeJean deserves a slice of credit for that.
At the heart of it all has been Fangio. The way all three levels of the defense have been playing in sync, and the unit's ability to adjust in real time to counteract the opponent's game plan, points directly back to coaching.
"He has a really good feel of how to call the game. I really feel that," said coach Nick Sirianni.
"I think that's what is so cool about Vic, that he's been a defensive coordinator for a long time, and he just is always looking to grow, always looking for new trends and different things like that. There's a reason why he's been a good defensive coordinator for decades in this league. It's because he's always growing and always getting better."
The biggest obstacle for this defense to overcome is edge rush depth. Brandon Graham was making a significant impact before suffering a season-ending triceps injury against the Los Angeles Rams Week 12. With Bryce Huff (wrist) also on injured reserve, the Eagles are working largely with a three-man rotation of Smith, Josh Sweat and rookie Jalyx Hunt.
Fangio is also testing the endurance of Carter, who has already played 56 more snaps than all of last year and has been on the field for 192 of the team's 202 defensive plays the past three games.
With five regular season games and the playoffs remaining, there's no guarantee this group will finish as strong as it has started. But for the moment, everything's humming at a rate well beyond what was anticipated.
"We've got a lot of momentum," Carter said. "We've just got to keep it going, we've got to keep elevating."