5 Homegrown Philadelphia Eagles this team can’t lose to free agency
By Ben Swanger
. Alex Singleton, Linebacker. . player. 54. .
Alex Singleton has found a home with the Philadelphia Eagles.
One of the better stories in 2020 for the Philadelphia Eagles was the emergence of former Canadian Football League star Alex Singleton. After becoming a CFL All-Star, a champion, and the league’s defensive player of the year, this young man stepped right into Jim Schwartz’s defense and became a tackling machine.
Philadelphia picked up Singleton in 2019, and he was elevated to the active roster in late October. In ten games, he failed to touch the field on defense, but he did log nearly 200 snaps on special teams. In 2020, it took a Nate Gerry injury to get him on the field, but once he was thrown into the fire, he finally showed his mettle.
The long-haired phenom led the team in tackles with 120 despite failing to log over 50 percent of defensive snaps until Week 6. Had Singleton been playing all season he could have made a run at the lead league in that category (164). Singleton also recorded seven quarterback hits, five tackles that resulted in a loss of yardage, and an interception that he returned for a touchdown.
Like Greg Ward, Singleton is an ERFA, which should all but seal the deal on his return in 2021, and also like Ward, Singleton is far too impressive for Philly to allow him to get away. At 27 years of age, this young man has plenty of prime years left. He might not be a top-notch linebacker on a great team, but if Philly is looking to have some sense of continuity in its defensive personnel next season, Singleton must return.
What took so long for both Singleton and Ward to get their opportunity is a head-scratcher. Both were undrafted prospects that were cast aside by most scouts and personnel departments only to land in the laps of Philadelphia. Philly’s eye for overlooked talent is keen. Philly’s coaches seem to develop the guys with no expectations, but for whatever reason, their ability to developing their drafted prospects into stars is a foreign concept to this organization. That’s another story for another day though.