Eagles sign LB Zach Brown: What our beat writers think

The Eagles finally addressed their depth at linebacker by signing former Pro Bowler Zach Brown.

Here’s what our beat writers think of the move:

I thought middle linebacker was a position that needed to be addressed, and I wasn’t buying the L.J. Fort hype without seeing how he will be used. So I’ll give the Eagles credit for this signing because, even if he might not be Jordan Hicks, Brown has proven to be a starting-caliber linebacker throughout his NFL career -- at times a high-level starter - and he’s certainly effective against the run, which is what the Eagles needed from a base-down linebacker. He turns 30 in August, so this isn’t a long-term solution. Brown may not be in his prime, but he has started 74 career games in three different systems and made the Pro Bowl. That is evidence that he can play, and he was one of the most productive linebackers in the NFL early last season.

When the Eagles had Hicks and Nigel Bradham on the field, they could be confident that they had two three-down linebackers. My guess is, other than Bradham, the Eagles’ linebacker corps will be more comparable to a platoon in baseball in which players are used in certain situations. Although the majority of their snaps are in nickel or dime, there are times when the Eagles are in base and need to stop the run. They have had one of the NFL’s best run defenses during the last two years, and the linebackers play a big part in that. Brown is the best option on those base downs. In the sub packages, my guess is there will be a combination of players depending upon performance this summer. Maybe it turns out to be Brown. Maybe Kamu Grugier-Hill stays on the field, or it’s Fort or Nate Gerry or Paul Worrilow. But Brown upgrades the unit, and the Eagles needed it. So my thumb is up on this move with the understanding that this isn’t an elite player they added, just a proven player who should help this unit.

What’s not to like about this move? The Eagles got a durable and still productive Pro Bowl linebacker with 74 career starts for pretty much next to nothing.

A one-year, $3 million deal for a guy who has missed just three games the last four years and hasn’t missed any in five of his seven NFL seasons.

One-year and $3 million for a guy who was the third-rated middle linebacker in the league last year, according to Pro Football Focus.

Yeah, Jordan Hicks might be a better player, but he missed 21 of 64 regular-season games his four years with the Eagles.

At the very least, Brown adds needed depth to a linebacker group that has just two players with more than 10 career starts. And one of those – Paul Worrilow – is coming off an ACL injury.

At the most, Brown becomes Jim Schwartz’s new Stephen Tulloch. Not the washed-up version the Eagles signed in 2016 but the productive one that anchored the middle of his defenses in Tennessee and Detroit. This could end up being one of the Eagles’ two most significant offseason additions. Could.

Brown will turn 30 in October. He’s probably one and done. But for $3 million, that’s fine. He should help the Eagles a lot more this season than any linebacker they could have gotten in last week’s draft.

This is a band-aid, but it’s the right-sized band-aid, and it ought to stick.

The Eagles don’t prioritize linebacking the way they do, say, edge rushing. If they have a couple capable guys and a couple less-capable guys who are good special-teamers, they’re OK with that even if it drives fans crazy who fondly recall the days of Bill Bergey or Jeremiah Trotter.

I wasn’t shocked that the team didn’t add a 'backer in last week’s draft. Analysts said this wasn’t a real good class. But I think adding a solid vet to the mix, a guy who projects to be about as good as Nigel Bradham, certainly can’t hurt, for $3 million and one year. From what I’ve seen on social media, some fans might be a little too giddy about Brown. He’s capable, but he’s kind of done his best work on bad teams, and he isn’t as good as Pro Football Focus thinks he is or he would have signed somewhere before this, for way more money. Still, I don’t see anything here not to like. If the band-aid holds, one of the thinner Eagles position group has been significantly upgraded.

Viewed in a vacuum, the Eagles’ signing of linebacker Zach Brown to a one-year deal isn’t a bad one. In fact, it could be looked at as a can’t lose. Brown has been a productive player for seven NFL seasons and even has a Pro Bowl nod on his resume. The Eagles needed to add to their linebacking corp and getting a starting-caliber veteran at this stage is a win-win.

But Brown is now on his fourth team and has been allowed to walk into free agency three times. He plays a position of lesser value, which could be one reason for his long wait on the market, but the rest of the league hasn’t been asleep at the wheel for nearly two months. The Eagles were unlikely to spend frivolously in free agency. Few would argue with letting Jordan Hicks walk after he signed a four-year, $36 million contract. And they weren’t likely to expend a high draft pick on a linebacker. But could they have done more to fill Hicks’ spot?

It’s a fair argument. Nigel Bradham can handle middle linebacker responsibilities, especially in nickel personnel. But even he has said that he prefers to play a lesser role in terms of communication. The Eagles have several candidates to play alongside Bradham, with Brown now stepping to the fore. The others are Paul Worrilow, Nathan Gerry, Kamu Grugier-Hill and L.J. Fort. B.J. Bello and Alex Singleton are also on the roster. It would take an optimist to say any one those linebackers will be an upgrade over Hicks.

A third linebacker will play about only 25 percent of the snaps. But the top two linebackers should specialize in pass coverage and that isn’t exactly Brown’s forte. Hicks was one of the best in the league at dropping into zones or covering running backs out of the backfield. Even if Brown plays only on base downs, I’d be concerned about pairing any of the other candidates with Bradham. The Eagles still have time to add bodies or make a trade or develop an undrafted rookie. Brown improves the group, but given the proper context, it’s no slam dunk addition.