By Kevin Durso, Sports Talk Philly editor 
The Eagles made a necessary move on Sunday by adding linebacker depth with the signing of Stephen Tulloch.
It made sense for so many reasons.
Once Joe Walker went down with a season-ending ACL injury, the Eagles had a gaping hole in their linebacker core. Tulloch, who had played under defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz for three seasons, was still without a team. It all seemed to line up, at least in Doug Pederson's eyes.
"Obviously he's familiar with coach Schwartz's defense," Pederson said. "At the same time, he's coming in to compete for that linebacker spot there in the middle and it's just unfortunate with the loss of Joe right now that we need depth to fill that spot. We just got see where he's at, what his health is when he gets here and then slowly work him in."
So now that Tulloch is officially an Eagle after a few weeks of speculation, where exactly does he fit in?
On the surface, this is a depth signing to provide security and added skill. But the Eagles likely didn't pay Tulloch $3 million to serve as a bench-hand. He's here to provide competition for significant playing time.
One way the Eagles could give Tulloch regular use is through rotations among the linebackers. If you consider Tulloch a capable starter on this team, then the Eagles have four linebackers worthy of starting time — Jordan Hicks, Mychal Kendricks and Nigel Bradham.
In each of the last two seasons, the Eagles defense seemingly took a turn when the starting middle linebacker went down.
DeMeco Ryans suffered an Achilles injury that ended his season in Week 8 in 2014. The Eagles were 6-2 after that game, a 31-21 win in Houston. They went 4-4 the rest of the way, finishing 10-6 and out of the playoffs.
Hicks was turning heads as a rookie with veteran-like qualities last season when he suffered a season-ending torn pectoral muscle. The Eagles were 4-4 at that point in the season and finished the season 3-5 to post a 7-9 record and again missed the playoffs.
The notable thing about Tulloch is his age comparison to the rest of the linebacker group. Hicks is 24, Bradham is 26, Kendricks is 25, Najee Goode is 27. Tulloch is 31, already the veteran of the group. While Hicks took over for Ryans last season as the starter before his injury, the second-year linebacker clearly benefitted from a veteran presence as a rookie and is embracing the addition.
"I want this team to be as good as we possibly can," Hicks said. "I think adding another veteran presence and another linebacker to our core and having that type of depth and being able to move around and have another aspect will help a lot."
Kendricks agreed, saying there is value in the signing.
"It's a good thing," Kendricks said. "A guy who can come in and add to the team only adds value."
With their linebackers being so valuable, the rotation of four or even five players among that group could be essential to the Eagles success this season. And while expectations are low, Tulloch is a lot more than a depth signing, seemingly a win-now move by the Eagles.
This team might not be given much of a chance on paper, but they are pulling out all the stops to prove naysayers wrong.
If there is to be any success, it will take improvement on defense as a whole. The linebackers in particular need to be sharp and stay healthy. An added body with Tulloch's experience and ability could certainly lead to some success.
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