2 Reasons Philadelphia Eagles could sign Barnett to an extension

2. The Philadelphia Eagles and their fans have seen this movie before.

Often, we recognize that quarterbacks need coaching. We recognize that cornerbacks will need correction and guidance from time to time, but for whatever reason, the expectation is Andre Dillard and Halapoulivaati Vaitai should dominate from their first day on the job and guys like Barnett should rack up 15 sacks in his rookie stanza. It just isn’t always realistic.

Then, there’s this. Any Eagles fan who believes it’s over for Barnett needn’t look any further than Brandon Graham for inspiration. After the Eagles went with “B.G.” over Earl Thomas in the first round of 2010’s draft, some of Graham’s development was tough to watch, especially when he missed 13 games of his sophomore campaign. 11.5 sacks were the result of his first four seasons, and five of those came in 2012. It didn’t help matters that Thomas got off to a fast start in his Seattle Seahawks career, making five straight Pro Bowls from 2011 to 2015.

Eventually, Graham took off. He really blossomed in the 3-4 with Chip Kellly before the “Birds” would return to the 4-3 under Jim Schwartz in 2016. Nowadays, “B.G.” is seen as a shoo-in for the Eagles Hall of Fame and one of the most underappreciated players in the NFL, but it wasn’t always that way. Once upon a time, Graham was the disappointing first-rounder that got off to a slow start. Sound familiar?

If you’re an Eagles fan, the good news is this. We’ve seen this movie before. Like Graham, Barnett got hurt in his second season. Like Graham, Barnett got off to a slow start. Perhaps he’s just gotten off to a slow start. So far it hasn’t killed Philly. Maybe it will help with the negotiations come contract time. We’ll know soon enough. Philly has him in the fold for two more seasons. Hopefully, the breakout comes sooner rather than later.