Philadelphia Eagles Offensive Line: Strength or Weakness?

With the fourth overall pick in the 2013 NFL Draft, the Philadelphia Eagles picked a raw but extremely athletic tackle out of Oklahoma, Lane Johnson. Johnson immediately stepped in as the right tackle for the Eagles and by in large, has played well. 

However, since that time, the Eagles have had 20 draft picks. They have spent zero on offensive lineman. It was the first time in franchise history that the Eagles have gone two consecutive seasons without drafting an offensive lineman.

It was a curious decision for a team with the oldest starting offensive line in the league. From left to right, the Eagles projected starting line up, with their age during the 2015 season, is: Jason Peters (33), Evan Mathis (34), Jason Kelce (27), Allen Barbre (31), and Lane Johnson (25). 

I do not fault the Eagles for letting Todd Herremans go. He was a great Eagle. A lunch pail kind of guy that brought it every day. But he was 32 going on 40. Injuries started to pile up and it was limiting not only his availability, but also his effectiveness.

However, I was certain that the Eagles would draft his replacement (or eventual replacement) in this draft. The Eagles showed considerable interest in a number of offensive lineman, but for whatever reason, they were unable to draft one. 

Which means the Eagles have to rely on Allen Barbre to fill in for Herremans. Barbre is a journeyman offensive lineman. He's played for the Packers, Seahawks, and Dolphins, starting only eight games in his seven year NFL career. He had his shot with the Packers at right tackle in his third season, but played poorly. When he was with the Seahawks in 2012, he was suspended four games for violating the leagues . He was cut by the Seahawks, and sat out the entire 2012 campaign before being signed by the Eagles in 2013.

Barbre filled in for the injured Jason Peters in 2013 against the Packers, and played well. His next shot came in 2014, when he was to fill in for Lane Johnson, but he got injured: a high ankle sprain so severe that it required season ending surgery.

Les Bowen did a piece on Barbre a few days back, and interviewed Jason Kelce, who had the following to say on Barbre:

You can see the way a guy works in practice. You can see the way a guy moves during drills with offensive linemen, during 'team' with the defensive line…You can kind of scale where you think he's going to be in a game-type situation. They certainly trust him. When he's gone in for us, he's done a great job…I think physically, Allen at this point, just being a little bit younger and a little bit stronger, probably has a little bit of a leg up on him there."

Relying on Barbre to replace Herremans is not a horrible decision.  As mentioned, Herremans' play has started to decline, so there likely will not be a noticeable drop off from the switch.

The real issue facing the Eagles is their lack of depth to account for injuries at other spots on the offensive line or the eventual trade or release of Evan Mathis.

I wrote an article last week about how contentious the relationship has become between Mathis and Eagles head coach, Chip Kelly. When a player and coach start taking shots at each other through the media, it is highly unlikely that the relationship can be salvaged.

If Mathis is traded, who fills in for him? Because while it might be reasonable to assume that Barbre can fill in for Herremans, are we really confident in Matt Tobin or Andrew Gardner replacing Evan Mathis, one of the top guards in the NFL? That is where the lack of drafting an offensive lineman becomes problematic. 

What's more, the remaining part of the line — Jason Peters, Jason Kelce, and Lane Johnson — are not locks to play either. 

Last year, Jason Peters was the top rated tackle per ProFootballFocus.com. He gave up only 4 sacks, 4 quarterback hits, and 17 quarterback hurries on the season. He was called for seven penalties last year. All impressive numbers. 

But a number of people have suggested that Peters is losing a step, and given his age and injury history (he tore his achilles in 2012, and reinjured it that same offseason), it is not surprising. Peters likely reached his peak in 2013, when he was absolutely dominant. But at his age, he is likely on the downside of his career, which means he has 1-2 good years left before his play becomes a liability. 

Jason Kelce is one of the best centers in football. No doubt about that. But he also has had a slew of injuries in his short career. Last year, he missed considerable time because of a sports hernia, which required surgery. In 2012, Kelce was placed on season ending injured reserved after tearing his mcl. Hopefully these were freak accidents. If so, the Eagles should be set at center for the next five years at least. But if he is injured again, the Eagles have little depth behind him. David Molk, who filled in for Kelce at times last year, is not a starting caliber player. 

And while Lane Johnson has not missed a game due to injury in his short career, he has already been suspended once for violating the league's performance enhancing drug policy. He missed four games the first time. If he is suspended again, he would miss the entire season. 

All of this makes the decision to not aggressively pursue the undrafted, but potential top 10 pick, La'el Collins, even more puzzling. Collins, of course, signed with hated rival Dallas this week. It's hard to know how much the Eagles pursued Collins. Kelly said Collins was not on the Eagles draft board given his connection to his girlfriend's murder. But given their lack of depth, they should have moved heaven and earth to try to get Collins signed after his name was cleared this week. He would have immediately stepped in to play right guard for the Birds, or provided cover for an eventual trade or release of Evan Mathis. And he would have projected long term as the Eagles right tackle of the future, after Johnson moved to left tackle.

This is not to say that the Eagles offensive line, as constructed, will be bad. If they can stay healthy, the Eagles could have a very good offensive line.

But that's a big if given the age of some of their players (Peters, Mathis) and the injury history of others (Kelce). 

Take the difference between 2013 and 2014 for example. In 2013, the Eagles had the incredible fortune of not having a single offensive lineman miss a game for the entire year. Their running game was absolutely dominant as a result. 

However, in 2014, the Eagles were beset by injuries, which limited the effectiveness of their running game. Take a look at this chart, which compares the averages for 2013 versus 2014:

Given that these players are a year older, and have more wear and tear on their body, was it reasonable for the Eagles to assume that the offensive line would bounce back? Perhaps. The Eagles better hope so, and the offensive lineman better drink up on those smoothies. Otherwise, we could be in for a long season.