Eagles bold offseason move should be rebuild defense from scratch

The Philadelphia Eagles have seven pending free agents on the defensive side of the ball that played in at least 700 snaps last season.

Bringing everyone of those seven players back will be impossible, so which ones will Howie Roseman target?

Get our free mobile app

That’s one of the main reasons why Football Outsiders suggest the Eagles rip down their defense and start from scratch in ESPN’s bold offseason moves for all 32 teams published Friday.

These shrewd deals are not going to hit every time, but Philadelphia could supplement its 2023 defense by scouring the buyout market and making low-risk trades for players. This keeps the Eagles' defense competitive without eating into too much cap space, and it still allows Philadelphia to stockpile and develop rookie-contract talent.

Free agency opens on March 15 and the Eagles could see Javon Hargrave, Fletcher Cox, Brandon Graham, T.J. Edwards, Kyzir White, James Bradberry, C.J. Gardner-Johnson and Marcus Epps hit the open market and find new teams.

One area they can star their rebuild on defense is with pick No. 10 in the upcoming 2023 NFL Draft. The team could target a top prospect with that 10th overall pick to replenish their defensive line or at cornerback.

Joey Porter Jr, Devon Witherspoon, Christian Gonzalez and Kelee Ringo are the top available corners. On the defensive line, Tyree Wilson, Myles Murphy, Lukas Van Ness and tackles Jalen Carter, Bryan Bresee and Calijah Kancey are names to keep an eye on at pick No. 10.

My take is this. If Jalen Carter is on the board at No. 10 and the team doesn't have a "do not draft" grade on him, meaning his off the field issues have not be resolved and the organization has decided they will not draft him. If that isn't the case and he is on the board at No. 10, he will be the Eagles pick.

The draft is one way to help rebuild their defense. Finding free agents, like they did in the 2022 offseason, is another way to help replenish their talent on the defensive side of the ball for the 2023 season.