Why the Eagles will miss Fletcher Cox on Sunday

The Philadelphia Eagles will be missing Fletcher Cox again this week. They will really wish he was on the field.

Fletcher Cox will be missing from the Philadelphia Eagles lineup again as they take on the Arizona Cardinals. He is a key piece to the Eagles’ defensive line and will be sorely missed. Why? Well, his impact is glaringly obvious.

That’s right. In the six quarters Cox hasn’t played this year, the Eagles have given up 48 points. They gave up 44 points in the ten quarters he played. In other words, with Cox, the Eagles give up 4.4 points per quarter. Without him, they give up eight points per quarter.

The contract Schwartz is talking about is the six-year $103 million extension Cox signed before the 2016 NFL season. The extension contained the largest guaranteed amount for a non-quarterback at that point.

The Eagles are coming up on a sneaky good Cardinals team. They have scored at least 26 points in three of their four games this year. After being written off due to injuries, the Cardinals are coming into week five with a 3-1 record. They also have the second-best passing attack in football.

Cox’s impact on the Eagle’s defense is also apparent in the stats. In two and a half games, he has two fumble recoveries, a touchdown, two sacks and four tackles. If we add in his last two years as well, he has 18 sacks, 81 tackles, and five fumble recoveries in 35 games.

Not only will Philadelphia miss his production on the field, but they will miss his leadership off the field as well. When the Eagles signed Cox to his big extension, Howie Roseman, the executive vice president of football operations for the Eagles, had this to say. “His character, his work ethic, his leadership ability — we can build around Fletcher Cox.”

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Philadelphia may still win their game against the Cardinals on Oct. 8, but they will certainly wish Cox was out there with him. When he’s on the field, winning is just easier.