A lot has been said about the young Philadelphia Eagles' defense entering the 2025 season, as they have high expectations for one of their rookies, Jihaad Campbell.
After the success of Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean last year as rookies, Campbell is facing similar expectations to step up early. He could end up playing a bigger role in the defense than some think.
Bleacher Report writer Matt Holder wrote about the outlook of each 2025 first-round pick. Campbell's initial role, according to Holder, is competing for the starting linebacker job.
"Last year’s breakout star and first-team All-Pro selection, Zack Baun, isn’t going anywhere in the Eagles’ starting lineup. But the defense will likely be missing Nakobe Dean at least to begin the upcoming campaign, as Dean tore a patellar tendon during the playoffs.
That creates an opportunity for Campbell to play right away. However, second-year pro Jeremiah Trotter Jr. played well in his limited opportunities last year to provide some competition. Still, the Alabama product is the favorite to win the job, and the bigger question is if he can play well enough to keep it when Dean returns."
How much will Campbell play in 2025?
Last year at Alabama, Campbell posted 117 tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss, five sacks, two forced fumbles, two pass breakups, and one interception in 13 games. He came into the draft process as a mid-round pick in the first round. His torn labrum injury that he had surgery on this offseason might have led some teams to stray away from him.
One guy that wasn't scared of going after him: Eagles general manager Howie Roseman. It's like Roseman knew Campbell's potential in being a great run stopper and eventual pass rusher off the edge, so he tried to trade up for him in the draft through multiple picks before the Chiefs caved in and struck a deal with Philadelphia to move up one spot to get him.
Unfortunately for Campbell, he has not been able to make a good first impression at offseason workouts due to his recovery from injury. His defensive coordinator, Vic Fangio, initially stated that Campbell would return by mid-August, but head coach Nick Sirianni wouldn't commit to a specific timeline.
Campbell has some work to do in training camp if he wants to start in Week 1. As of offseason workouts, it has been Baun and Trotter getting the first-team reps. Dean and Campbell hope to be back by training camp to get into the rotation.
The most likely role for Campbell is backing up Dean and Baun to start the season and slowly easing into the lineup. They have had guys like Mitchell and Jalen Carter who made instant impacts, but Campbell is most likely like DeJean, where it might take until the midway point of the season for all of it to click.
Read more:NFL writer's simple one-sentence explanation on how Jalen Hurts dominates in 2025
Eagles fans hope to see their top pick out there this season, but for the sake of the future, it might be better to have him as a backup and learn before diving headfirst into the field.