Leading up to the draft, all the talk surrounded the Philadelphia Eagles desire for a quarterback in Chip Kelly’s system.
It was the saga of Sam Bradford and the possibility the Eagles would make a push to acquire the draft pick that was ticketed for Marcus Mariota.
With the draft in the rear-view mirror, Bradford is the Eagles quarterback moving forward, which looks like a void, considering the injury risk that surrounds the quarterback. But there were always greater concerns than quarterback for the Eagles.
The Eagles success in 2015 does not rely on Bradford alone. It relies on the defensive improvements this team has made on paper and the hope that they translate over to the field.
Quarterback is the primary position on the football field, no question about it. If you can’t build around your quarterback, chances are the season comes to a close sometime in early January for your team.
The Eagles haven’t made a deep playoff run since the now-retired No. 5 was on the field, now in the rafters.
That said, what has really be the proven factor in delivering a Super Bowl to teams in recent years is defense. That’s how Seattle won in 2013. That’s how Baltimore won in 2012. And New England has always held that perfect balance, the dynamite quarterback who lives for the bright lights of the Super Bowl, but a defense that is as good a supporting cast as any in sports.
The Eagles weren’t going to become a Super Bowl contender overnight, and may still be a distance away from making that claim. But they needed to start the improvements in the areas where need was greatest. That was secondary.
The Eagles have overhauled that secondary group while keeping a strong front seven defensively intact. Yes, the offensive line may lack depth. Yes, the quarterback position is as big a risk as any. But it starts on the defensive side of the ball.
There is no question the Eagles would have been a playoff team at 10-6 last season – or better – with a better group in the secondary. Realistically, this team was one win away from the NFC East title – Week 15 at home against Dallas. They win that game, the Cowboys don’t make the playoffs. Simple as that.
So the Eagles put their due diligence into this offseason to address that need. They prioritized and got heavily focused on defense in order to take a load off the offense.
The goal for the defense in this upcoming season is to improve in one area that was a common problem: get off the field. Countless times the Eagles were faced with third down needing one defensive stop to halt a drive. When they failed, it would often lead to another eight plays on the drive that kept the defense winded.
The offense will score, and it will happen no matter who is at quarterback. What the Eagles needed to fix first was who was on the other end, making sure the defense could get off the field as fast as the offense was.
There are no guarantees, but this offseason so far is a step in the right direction.
Kevin Durso is a contributing writer and editorial assistant for Eagledelphia. Follow him on Twitter @Kevin_Durso.
