The Philadelphia Eagles have lost several key players on the defensive side of the ball this offseason. Darius Slay, C.J. Gardner-Johnson, and Josh Sweat are just some veterans who have departed from the defending Super Bowl champions.
Now, it’s true …
Philadelphia still employs plenty of stars on its defense to mitigate those losses. Jalen Carter, Zack Baun, and Quinyon Mitchell are all All-Pro or Pro Bowl-caliber players who should keep the top-ranked 2024 unit among the best in the league in 2025.
But that doesn't mean there aren't red flags worthy of concern.
CBS Sports' Cody Benjamin shared a column this week that highlighted just how difficult it could be for the Eagles to keep their dominant ways.
"Vic Fangio was the perfect man to oversee the Eagles' defense in 2024, bringing discipline and tenacity back to a unit that had become practically lifeless," Benjamin said. "Now he'll be charged with defending the Birds' crown while likely overseeing new starters at every level of the lineup.
"Fangio may need veteran Band-Aids like Azeez Ojulari and Adoree' Jackson to help keep the ship afloat early on. It's just the cost of fielding a championship roster."
Coaching certainly matters, as Benjamin said. Fangio's ability to get the most out of his young players should help the Eagles field a strong defense for a second straight year.
The lack of veteran leadership, though, could cause a problem.
Philadelphia projects to possibly have the youngest defense in the league this year, which - as a positive, because youth can be good - is why they were OK with moving on from some of their aging stars this offseason for cap reasons.
But …
Time will tell if that mindset was the right way to go, or if the red flags that come with getting younger can hurt the champs in 2025.