3 Reasons not to worry about these Philadelphia Eagles linebackers

1. The Philadelphia Eagles have succeeded without stud linebackers in the past.

It may not seem like it, but throughout the totality of Eagles history, the team has had a pretty good track record with linebackers. Names like Chuck Bednarik, Bill Bergey, Seth Joyner, and the aforementioned Trotter come to mind, but Bednarik, whose championships came before the inception of the Super Bowl (he’s also the only Eagle to play on both the 1949 and 1960 championship teams), is the only one mentioned in that group that has seen championship glory.

Granted, each of these legendary Eagles linebackers had solid and, sometimes, Pro Bowl partners in crime, but they still couldn’t get over the hump, and ever since Philly lost to the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XXIX, it’s been all downhill at the linebacker position, but that’s okay.

Since Jeremiah Trotter accomplished the same feat in 2005, the only other Eagles linebacker to earn a Pro Bowl nod has been Connor Barwin (2014). With that being said, Barwin was a 3-4 outside linebacker, basically a glorified defensive end whose primary goal was to rush the passer and cover occasionally in the passing game.

Despite that Pro Bowl rut at linebacker, the Eagles have still made the playoffs eight times in that 15-year stretch. Just three seasons ago in 2017, they won their first and only Super Bowl. The starting linebackers in that one were Mychal Kendricks, who’s out of the league, Nigel Bradham, who’s also unemployed after getting cut by the New Orleans Saints, and journeyman Dannell Ellerbee (also out of the league). Be honest. How many of you forgot that Ellerbee was a starter in the Super Bowl?

The biggest takeaway from all of that is this. The Eagles have found profound success without stud linebackers, and there’s no reason to believe they can’t do it again.