The Philadelphia Eagles’ vaunted defensive line has long been viewed as one of the team’s biggest strengths, but it can’t be understated just how much of a strength it’s been so far this season. Much of the credit rightfully goes to defensive coordinator Sean Desai and the adjustments he’s made through the first five weeks of the season, especially when it comes to blitzing.

Desai spoke at his midweek media session about sending more players after the quarter in recent wins:

“I think we keep evolving as a defense. We keep growing, and the teams that we’re playing are different. We’ve got to be able to adapt and adjust to the teams we’re playing and what we think gives us the best chance each week to impact the opposing offense. And that philosophy won’t change.  Whatever we think is the best as a staff with our players and putting them in the best positions, that’s what we’ve got to do. And we’ve got to give our guys the best chance to win because our guys care and they’re fighters and they’re going to work and they take ownership of it. That’s what we want. We want them to take ownership of the plan each week and they have got to trust that we’re doing everything we can to put them in the position to win.”

Take a look at the Eagles’ blitz rates through the first five games, via SportRadar/Pro Football Focus data:

  • Week 1: 23.2%
  • Week 2: 17.4%
  • Week 3: 22.2%
  • Week 4: 31.9%
  • Week 5: 31.7%

On the season, the Eagles’ blitz rate is 25.3%, which is good for 17th in the NFL, and still middle of the pack, but that number will continue to climb if Desai comes into the Jets and Commanders games with the same approach as the last two wins. 

Last year, under Jonathan Gannon, the Eagles finished with a 23.2% blitz rate, so while the total number hasn’t shifted much through 29% of this season, clearly one of Desai’s early adjustments has been to attack the quarterback more often.


Speaking of attacking the quarterback, while last season’s defense was historically good at sacking quarterbacks, this year’s team is leading the league in pressures.

Desai touched on that:

“It’s this whole thing of what’s better, pressures or sacks? We always want pressures, and pressures come first before sacks. Before you get a sack, you have to have quarterback pressure. It’s just a matter of timing. Sacks come — they’ll come, and they’ll continue to come for us. And we’ll continue to put our guys in positions to make it, and then it’s all coordinated in terms of the rush and the coverage working together to be able to get sacks, to be able to get PBUs, to be able to get tips and overthrows and do all that stuff and force the balls out and force fumbles, but it’s all a coordinated effort. As long as you keep pressing, you keep trusting the technique and the training you’re getting, that stuff will come.”

As of Week 5, according to the SportRadar/PFF data, the Eagles have the league’s #1 defensive pressure percentage at 25.6. That’s a number measuring how often the defense either sacked, hurried, or knocked down a quarterback.

Even if the Eagles’ sack numbers don’t jump off the page as much as last year, they’re still wreaking havoc in the backfield at an elite rate. Being the #1 pressure team while currently hovering around league average in blitz rate means the team is excellent at reaching the quarterback without always having to commit extra blitzing personnel, which is a credit to both the players and Desai himself. 

Kinkead: I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Desai started sending more pressure as members of the secondary began popping up on the injury report. If you’re getting after the QB, that’s less time that inexperienced DBs have to cover in space. Play to your strengths. Let the D line feast.