Eagles successfully claim Brandon Graham replacement off of waivers
Yesterday at 06:13 PM
When news broke that Brandon Graham was going to miss the rest of the season with a triceps injury, it sent Philadelphia Eagles fans into a crisis.
On one hand, losing BG, the heart and soul of the front seven, 12 games into his retirement season was a tough pill to swallow, but his injury also added a logistical issue to the team as well, as the Eagles are suddenly very thing at the defensive end position, assuming Graham lands on IR alongside Bryce Huff.
With just three outside linebackers on the active roster left in starters, Josh Sweat and Nolan Smith, plus rookie third-round pick Jaylix Hunt, who was widely considered a project heading into the year, and the Eagles’ depth looked dangerously thin, with fans hypothesizing about everyone from Randy Gregory to practice squad member Tarron Jackson as potential replacements.
And yet, in a weird twist of NFL serendipity, the Eagles were gifted a new rusher via the Carolina Panthers, who waived their top sack guy of the season, Charles Harris, to free up a roster spot for claimed cornerback Akayleb Evans. Before being successfully claimed off of waivers by Philly, Harris’ name immediately became a favorite among Eagles fans due to his pedigree as a former first-round pick, his experience across multiple different schemes, and his 19.5 career sacks over 99 games, which is more than most of the options available on the open market in this a post-trade deadline world.
Is Harris a magic pill who will fix the Eagles pass-rushing issues, let alone just replace BG’s production? No, probably not; Harris has a sub-60 rating across the board from PFF this season and hasn’t been an above-average player since his breakout run with the Detroit Lions back in 2021 under Dan Campbell and Aaron Glenn.
Still, Harris is a 3-4 defensive end with experience rushing from a two-point stance, which can be tricky for some players who haven’t done it before, as Huff has noted this year. Use him as a pass rusher for now, hope he can learn the run defense concepts Fangio expects from his outside linebackers and know that the Eagles have at least five rushers when Huff eventually returns from IR.
Nick Sirianni accepts that Brandon Graham’s 15th Eagles season is over
After suggesting that Graham’s season may not be over shortly after the Eagles win over the Rams, holding out hope that his final prognosis might keep him available should Philadelphia make it to the Super Bowl, on Tuesday, Sirianni made it official: BG’s season is officially finished.
“I think it’s pretty well known that he’ll be out for the rest of the season. Again, my heart goes out to him and how much he’s put into this thing, his entire career and this season. And we’ll sure as heck miss him,” Graham told reporters.
“I know one thing about BG is that the play, like I said, speaks for itself. His leadership is very special. And BG is going to be around. He’s going to be still leading. I know that man can lead when he’s on the field, when he’s off the field, no matter what. I’m excited that we still have his leadership and everything that he feeds this football team. But bummed for Brandon.”
Would it have been cool if BG could make a return in February? Sure thing, the Lions have used Aidan Hutchenson’s potential return as an influence for their playoff push, and the Eagles could have done the same. But with that option now over, the Eagles will now need BG to help their new rusher, Harris, learn the ropes, which is an important task, too, but lacks the flash that comes with sacking a quarterback.
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