After slow start, Eagles hope Haason Reddick is ready to ride a sack 'wave'

No one expected the Philadelphia Eagles to repeat what their pass rush did last season. Not after losing defensive coordinator Johnathan Gannon to a head coaching job. And certainly not after losing defensive tackle Javon Hargrave to free agency. 

But while they might not have expected another 70-sack season, they probably figured they'd do a little better than they have through the first four games of the season. And you can bet they expected more out of Haason Reddick, their best edge rusher, who had a team-leading 16 sacks last season. When the Eagles erupted for five sacks of Washington Commanders quarterback Sam Howell in their 34-31 overtime win on Sunday, it only lifted their season-sack total to 11.

And when Reddick sacked Howell on the Washington 23 on a third-down play with about four minutes remaining, it wasn't just a huge play that set up the Eagles' go-ahead touchdown drive, it was also his first sack of the year.

That might all be very alarming if the Eagles weren't 4-0. But it is still worrisome that their defense is only ranked 16th and their pass defense (27th) is statistically one of the worst in the NFL. Their secondary has struggled, no doubt, but it's hard to deny how much it's hurt that their best edge rusher hasn't gotten going yet.

Still, with the 29-year-old Reddick, Eagles coach Nick Sirianni made it clear he's not worried at all.

"When you ask me that question, my initial response is ‘Well, he's still getting pressures,'" Sirianni said on Wednesday. "Sacks just come in waves. He got his first sack, but that doesn't mean he hasn't changed the game because of the way he's putting pressure on the quarterback. It's just the first time he actually got him down to the ground."

For what it's worth — and clearly the Eagles think it's worth a lot — Reddick does have 13 quarterback pressures and 11 hurries this season, according to Pro Football Focus, though he only has one quarterback hit. But they are used to Reddick getting the quarterback to the ground much more than he's been doing. The last time he had a four-game stretch with only one sack was the last four games of the 2021 season, when he was still playing in Carolina.

Of course, last year Reddick was healthy, for the most part. This year, he injured his thumb in training camp in a joint practice with the Cleveland Browns on Aug. 17. He underwent surgery, and though he hasn't missed any regular season games, he missed plenty of practice time and only took the protective cast off his thumb last week.

Reddick hasn't blamed the injury for his sack-deficient start, but it would be impossible to ignore that as a possible cause.

"I'm not sure if it's a function of the cast or not," said Eagles defensive coordinator Sean Desai. "But he's continued to get better. He's always been physical at the point. He's winning at a high rate in his one-on-ones. He's continually getting better and he's going to continue to have his shots."  

There's no doubt that Reddick's slow start is impacting the Eagles' pass rush, but he's clearly not the only one that hasn't been racking up the sacks. Until the Commanders game, when linebacker Nick Morrow led the way with three and defensive end Josh Sweat added one (to give him 2 ½ on the season), sacks were virtually nonexistent. In fact, 4 1/2 of their first six came up the middle — 1 ½ each from defensive tackles Jordan Davis and Jalen Carter, one from defensive tackle Marlon Tuipolatu, and a half sack from Fletcher Cox.

Brandon Graham, who had 11 sacks last season, hasn't had one yet. Neither has rookie Nolan Smith. Though to be fair, Graham — who re-signed with Philly for $6 million — appears to be more of a part-time player this year than he was last year (just 83 defensive snaps so far). And Smith, a first-round pick, has only played 55 snaps. The Eagles also haven't had a single sack from a blitzing corner or safety either, though that's not unusual since even last year more than 90 percent of the Eagles' sacks came from defensive linemen.

Clearly, they need a little more pass-rushing help from somewhere this season. What they mostly need, though, is help from Reddick. Especially with Hargrave and his 11 sacks gone, they knew they'd need to rely on their best edge rusher more than ever. He had 39 ½ sacks over the last three seasons, and they need him to be at least at that pace this year if they want their pass rush to be as dominant as they expect it to be.

Maybe it was the thumb surgery. Maybe Sirianni is right when he says sacks come in waves. Maybe by the end of the season this four-game stretch will look be a weird anomaly for a player who was a Pro Bowler and a second-team All-Pro this year.

"I don't believe this is a bad time with Haason," Sirianni said.

It's not a great time, though, just like it's not a great time for the Eagles' once-unstoppable pass rush. Maybe it's not a huge concern for one of the NFL's two remaining undefeated teams, but it could be for one that believes it has a Super Bowl-caliber defense. They're going to need Reddick riding one of those sack waves if they expect to get back there again.

Ralph Vacchiano is the NFC East reporter for FOX Sports, covering the Washington Commanders, Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants. He spent the previous six years covering the Giants and Jets for SNY TV in New York, and before that, 16 years covering the Giants and the NFL for the New York Daily News. Follow him Twitter at @RalphVacchiano.