By Peter Gleason
The Eagles didn’t sack Washington Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins once in their second loss of the season last Sunday, and Cousins picked apart the Birds’ secondary.
And that’s largely because defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz hates the blitz.
Trouble is, that’s not working!
The Eagles blitzed on 19.5 percent of Washington’s passing plays which is more than usual for them. The Birds had zero sacks and only 11 pressures.
The defensive line as a whole didn’t generate consistent pressure. Defensive end Connor Barwin was especially bad.
According to PFF, Barwin had just two pressures on 31 pass rushes. He was ranked 89th out of 90 edge rushers in week 6.
A possible solution to the pass rushing woes would be to get Vinny Curry into the game more often. This of course, would take time away from the struggling Barwin.
Curry’s time did increase from two weeks ago against the Lions. His snap count percentage jumped from 26 percent in Detroit, to 42 percent in Washington. Over the past two games Curry had six tackles, one sack and two quarterback hits.
Curry is a natural pass rusher, and should be a great fit in Schwartz’s 4-3 scheme. If the Eagles want to improve their quarterback pressure, it may be wise to give Curry more time as the season continues.
