Watching linebacker Nakobe Dean depart from the Philadelphia Eagles in free agency was expected, but still a tough thing to see for the Birds.
Dean ended up agreeing to a three-year, $36 million deal with the Las Vegas Raiders after over a month of speculation that he could land with the Dallas Cowboys. Jane Slater reported that the Cowboys almost got him, but Dean ultimately decided to sign with the Raiders.
Losing Dean now leaves some questions on defense, as he was one of three defensive players on the Eagles to agree to sign elsewhere, with Jaelan Phillips heading to Carolina and Reed Blankenship planning to sign with the Houston Texans. Even with Dean out, the Eagles are still really solid at linebacker, which shouldn't worry the Eagles at all.
Eagles have options at linebacker to lean on
All eyes will be on Jihaad Campbell after he was selected in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft by Philly. Campbell started strong in 2025 as he replaced Dean with his injury, as Campbell finished the year with 80 tackles, three pass deflections, two tackles for loss, one quarterback hit, one interception, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery in 17 games.
While Dean was used more as a blitzing linebacker to pressure the quarterback, Campbell will be able to do the same thing and even more. Campbell can also come off the edge as an edge rusher and sack the quarterback there. Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio decided not to do that to make life easier on him in his rookie season.
Another name to watch is special teams ace Jeremiah Trotter Jr. During the 2025 season, Trotter was mainly on special teams, but he played significant time on defense in the final week against the Washington Commanders, recording 12 tackles, three pressures, two quarterback hits, and one tackle for loss.
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The Eagles are going to be just fine with Pro Bowler Zack Baun with Campbell in the starting lineup and Trotter rotating in. This should be a good unit in 2026 even without Dean.