5 Things Philadelphia Eagles Fans Should Be Thankful For
By Ryan Quigley
Oct 11, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Eagles outside linebacker
(58) is congratulated after recovering a fumble during the second quarter against the New Orleans Saints at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
1. Jordan Hicks
Jordan Hicks will miss the remainder of the season with a pectoral injury, but he has, without a doubt, been one of the best players on the Eagles.
Oh, and he’s only a rookie.
The Eagles drafted Hicks out of the University of Texas in the third round of the 2015 NFL Draft, but the immediate reception of the pick was a bit mixed. At the time, the Eagles had Mychal Kendricks, DeMeco Ryans and a healthy Kiko Alonso on the roster, so selecting another linebacker, especially so early in the draft, was a bit of a head-scratcher.
Luckily for the Eagles, the selection paid off.
One by one, Eagles linebackers were dropping like flies to start the season. First it was Alosno (no surprise), then it was Kendricks, ultimately leading to Hicks’ debut against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 2. After that, there was no looking back.
In eight games, Hicks compiled 50 tackles, a sack (which knocked Tony Romo out for eight weeks!), and two interceptions, one of which being a 67-yard pick six against, coincidentally, the Cowboys in Week 9.
Even more coincidentally, that turned out to be Hicks’ last game of 2015. But Eagles fans got a nice taste of what to expect from the young linebacker in coming years and that is quite a promising item to ponder.