4. Fletcher Cox, DT
The Eagles have some serious depth issues on the defensive line at this point. Going into the season, the Eagles were one of the most stacked defensive lines in terms of depth up front on defense. But injuries have taken that factor away rather quickly.
Malik Jackson is out for the year. Timmy Jernigan is out for at least four weeks. Now, that leaves Fletcher Cox as the only starting interior defensive lineman left. And who knows if he’s actually fully healthy. Cox missed a majority of the offseason due to a lower-body surgery.
Therefore, he’s been off to a bit of a slow start. Well, this week, Cox needs to step up in a big way. The Eagles’ defensive line has struggled to get pressure so far this season, and they need to start turning things around to help out the secondary.
If Cox begins to dominate like he did last season, the offensive line will begin to shift more of their focus on him. From there, others on the Eagles’ line will benefit. If Cox cannot do that, then we are likely to see more blitzes from the defense, creating a significant risk for the secondary who has been struggling.