When defensive tackle Fletcher Cox joined the Eagles as a first-round pick in 2012, he played in a 4-3 defense that employed some Wide 9 principles along the defensive line.
The last three years saw Cox in a 3-4 after Chip Kelly replaced Andy Reid and Cox did well enough in that scheme that the Eagles gave him a six-year extension with $63 million in guaranteed money last week. That scheme is out and new defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz is bringing back something similar to what Cox played in his rookie season.
During an appearance on Sirius XM NFL Radio with Alex Marvez and Kirk Morrison on Wednesday, Cox said that he and the rest of the players up front are excited about the change.
“My role is to get to the quarterback, really,” Cox said. “Play the run on the way to the quarterback. From the way that [coaches] are explaining it, go get the quarterback, create havoc. Negative plays is the biggest thing, and I don’t think we had had enough of those last year. I really think that’s going to change. And as far as Jim, with the new defense, I think is going to do a really, really good job this year with everybody. He’s got a name for himself with the 4-3 defense, getting after the quarterback and that’s what everybody’s excited to do, especially guys on the D-line.”
There’s been a lot of focus on the offense in Philadelphia this offseason, particularly on the quarterback position, which has overshadowed the potential for the defense to be better this year. They should be on the field less than they were when Kelly was in charge and making fuller use of players like Vinny Curry offers reason for optimism beyond having Cox in the center of the action.