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Philadelphia Eagles: 5 players who must improve

By Rucker Haringey

MINNEAPOLIS, MN - FEBRUARY 04: Alshon Jeffery #17 of the Philadelphia Eagles celebrates the 11-yard touchdown catch of teammate Zach Ertz #86 during the fourth quarter against the New England Patriotsin Super Bowl LII at U.S. Bank Stadium on February 4, 2018 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MN - FEBRUARY 04: Alshon Jeffery #17 of the Philadelphia Eagles celebrates the 11-yard touchdown catch of teammate Zach Ertz #86 during the fourth quarter against the New England Patriotsin Super Bowl LII at U.S. Bank Stadium on February 4, 2018 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /
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MINNEAPOLIS, MN – FEBRUARY 04: Philadelphia Eagles defensive end Derek Barnett (96) celebrates with teammate Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Patrick Robinson (21) after recovering a fumble during the fourth quarter of Super Bowl LII on February 4, 2018, at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, MN. (Photo by Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – FEBRUARY 04: Philadelphia Eagles defensive end Derek Barnett (96) celebrates with teammate Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Patrick Robinson (21) after recovering a fumble during the fourth quarter of Super Bowl LII on February 4, 2018, at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, MN. (Photo by Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

2. Derek Barnett

Barnett made his mark in Super Bowl history with a massive fumble recovery to help seal the Patriots fate. That covered up for what was a pretty mediocre season for the talented rookie. The Eagles need him to step up and become a consistent pass rusher this season.

The good news is he has plenty of talent. Philadelphia took him in the first round out of Tennessee for a reason. He was a nightmare for SEC tackles on a weekly basis for the Big Orange.

The challenge for Barnett will be making sure he can stay on the field for all three downs. He has excellent edge rushing technique, but he’s still a little undersized to hold up against the run. Barnett doesn’t need to be a dominant run-stuffer, he just needs to be adequate to stay on the field.

If he can do, the sky’s the limit for Barnett. He has the talent to develop into a consistent double-digit sack producer in the NFL. Five sacks and 21 tackles just isn’t good enough production for a player with Barnett’s talent. The Eagles need more production opposite Brandon Graham in 2018. If Barnett doesn’t come through next season, Philadelphia might be looking for an upgrade next summer.

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