Jihaad Campbell reflects on his first season with the Eagles and what’s ahead
The Eagles' first-round pick from South Jersey made an impact as a rookie and could be in for bigger things in 2026.
Jihaad Campbell’s rookie season with the Eagles did not follow a conventional trajectory.
The first-round pick out of Alabama was touted as a versatile defensive weapon who offered the Eagles the ability to line him up in multiple spots. He could align inside or outside, off the ball or on the ball. Nakobe Dean’s injury rehabilitation, however, meant Campbell worked exclusively inside during training camp and started there next to Zack Baun for the first seven games of the season.
» READ MORE: Nakobe Dean and Jaelan Phillips want to be back with the Eagles, but one has a greater chance than the other
Then Dean returned, forced himself back into a permanent role, and the Eagles toyed with Campbell on the edge a little more, at a position that lacked depth, before eventually cutting his playing time when reinforcements emerged. Then Campbell was back to starting inside after Dean suffered a hamstring injury in Week 16. Overall, it’s hard to judge how the 21-year-old’s season with the Eagles went.
“Some adversity points,” Campbell said when asked to summarize his season Monday as the Eagles cleaned out their lockers after their playoff exit. “But when you look back at it, the only thing I can think about is being grateful, being thankful for the opportunities that I learned throughout the season and just being able to be utilized and be trusted to be on the field.”
Campbell, a native of Erial in Camden County, finished the season playing all 17 games while starting 10 of them. He accumulated 80 tackles and had one interception to go with a fumble recovery and one forced fumble. Pro Football Focus graded him as the 13th-best of 88 linebackers. He excelled in pass coverage and was solid against the run.
Campbell is embarking on his first real NFL offseason and it is an important one. He will likely be, as he said, utilized and trusted more next season because Dean is a pending free agent whose return to the Eagles seems unlikely. The Eagles paid Baun a premium price and have Campbell on a rookie deal waiting in the wings to replace Dean.
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“Just hungry,” Campbell said of his offseason approach. “Of course, I’m going to give myself some grace and relax and get my mind off of things, but stay sharp spiritually, stay sharp physically, stay sharp mentally, and really do what I have to do to be the best absolute version of myself so when I come back I’m making sure that I’m staying on top of everything I have to do.”
Campbell said he wasn’t given specific things to work on from the Eagles’ coaching staff but planned to work on “everything.” There were things he learned with the Eagles and from Vic Fangio that he “never really knew.” He learned plenty from Dean, too.
“That’s a damn good football player,” Campbell said. “I learned a lot from that guy, man, in the run game, blitzes, in the passing game. Really just being a baller, a person who knows football in general. It’s hard to come around guys who really know football and really dissect it in a simple format. That’s what he does and that’s why he’s one of the best linebackers in the world.”
Campbell took his middle-of-the-season demotion in stride. He said in November that his focus was on helping the Eagles win games in whatever way he could and staying prepared for when his number was called. The Eagles needed him to start their final two regular-season games. He was credited with two quarterback pressures in each of those games and had seven tackles vs. Buffalo and 10 vs. Washington.
» READ MORE: Nakobe Dean and Jaelan Phillips want to be back with the Eagles, but one has a greater chance than the other
What made Campbell handle the ups and downs with ease?
“I think it’s just all about controlling the things that you can control, and only that,” he said. “I make sure that I come in this building every day with a smile on my face, with a getting-to-work mentality, whatever it is.”
It was unsurprising then, that Campbell didn’t put himself in a box when asked Monday about his positional future. Nine months ago, the Eagles lauded his ability to be a chess piece at different spots. Where does Campbell see himself long term?
“I think it’s all about the value and how good you can be at anything you can be put in, whether that’s being an R3 or L3 on kickoff or punt return, or any of those things on special teams,” he said. “For me, it’s all about just being trusted and being able to be utilized in this scheme wherever they want me to be at, whether that’s inside linebacker, outside linebacker, just making sure that I’m on top of my things and having continuous improvement.”
As he did this past season, Campbell seems content to go with the flow.