Brandon Brooks was not only the No.1 ranked OG in the NFL last year by PFF, but was considered the best Offensive Lineman, period. Brooks has been a key component for a Philadelphia Eagles team that has won two NFC East Titles and a Super Bowl Championship over the last three years. During that time span, the standout RG has only missed three total games despite suffering an Achilles tear and a dislocated shoulder. Unfortunately, Brooks is in familiar territory as he now has to rebound from a second Achilles tear (1 in each leg) in two years.
On the 10th year anniversary of the Houston Texans’ inaugural season, Brandon Brooks was selected in the third round of the 2012 NFL Draft. After being the seventh guard selected, Brooks essentially redshirted his first year (0 GS/6 GP) before starting all of the remaining 44 games he played in Houston on his rookie contract.
Regardless of the fact that Brooks game was elevating, the Texans decided his price tag was too steep, so Brooks signed a 5y/$40M contract to join the Eagles in the city of Brotherly Love. Ever since the Wisconsin native left Houston, they’ve struggled to find his replacement at RG as they’ve tried the likes of former Chiefs Jeff Allen and Zach Fulton to no avail.
While HOU is struggling to find an answer, Philadelphia has benefitted from Brooks playing in over 95% of the team’s offensive snaps, starting all 48 regular season games, and earning Pro Bowl trips in all of his last three years. Brooks has recently become arguably the most dominant offensive guard in the NFL despite not being acknowledged as a first team All-Pro by the Associated Press. Pro Football Focus recognized his production as they valued him as the No.1 OL in the NFL last year.
Despite tearing his right Achilles during the NFC Divisional Round against the Saints in 2018, Brooks returned to full strength and played in all 16 games during the 2019 season. Not only did Brooks recover from a typical 12-month injury in only seven and a half months, but he also produced the best PFF Grade (92.9) of his entire eight-year NFL career. He wasn’t able to make it through the full season though, as he missed the Eagles NFC Wild Card matchup against the Seattle Seahawks following surgery on a dislocated shoulder.
With Brandon Brooks ready to go under the knife for the third time in two years, the Eagles should be weary that Brooks’ overall performance could take a massive hit in the near future. This doesn’t mean the Eagles are considering giving up on the 31-year-old, even with the major Achilles tears in each of his heels, but they should have backup plans in place.
What’s in Brooks’ favor is not only the recent 4y/$56.2M extension with $30M guaranteed Philly gave him within a year of tearing his Achilles, but he also the ability and relentless determination he’s shown to not let past adversity cause his play to falter. Most importantly, the former third round pick has asserted his dominance since arriving in Philadelphia as a premier pass blocker and a bruising run blocker.
The highest-paid Offensive Guard in the NFL will be out to prove that Philly made a wise investment by keeping him in the fold through 2024. While some may want to see the Eagles draft Brooks replacement as a 31-year-old injury-prone player, the 3x Pro Bowler has earned his keeps and should be given the 2021 season to prove he can still ball. If he rebounds like he did in 2019, the patience will pay off brilliantly, but if his play becomes inconsistent and/or completely falters, that’s where the backup plans have to come into play.
FUTURE OUTLOOK: INJ (Injured)
The Philadelphia Eagles were already going through massive Offensive Line changes with the potential loss of franchise great Jason Peters and the unraveling of 2019 1st Round pick Andre Dillard. On top of that, Super Bowl starter and fan favorite Halapoulivaati Vaiti bolted for Detroit in Free Agency. These moves caused the Eagles to go from boasting serious depth at the Offensive Guard and Tackle positions to having relatively no experience behind their assumed starters.
With the massive loss of All-Pro contender Brandon Brooks, GM Howie Roseman, HC Doug Pederson, and OL coach Jeff Stoutland must get innovative to replace the best Right Guard in the NFL. However, with plenty of time left until the season kicks off, there’s a multitude of ways to try and replace an elite talent this year while he recovers. Over the past three NFL Drafts, Matt Pryor is the only OG Philadelphia has selected, as they’ve shifted their focus more to finding Jason Peters’ replacement (four OTs drafted over the last three years).
After making his first career start in the 2019 Wild Card game against the Seahawks, Matt Pryor has to be the favorite to win the starting RG spot. The Eagles O-Line struggled mightily in that game, giving up seven sacks, further cementing how important Brooks is to the continuity of this group. Also, Pryor is not the prototypical guard as he comes in at 6’7 332 pounds, making him susceptible to shorter Defensive Lineman getting underneath his pads and driving him off the ball (typically DTs not DEs). If the Eagles want to continue having one of the most dominant OL’s in recent history, then Pryor doesn’t seem like the player to continue the trend.
The Eagles’ best chance to maintaining that dominant offensive front is attacking the Free Agent market to chase experience over potential. The first name that should come to Roseman’s mind is Larry Warford who became a cap casualty in New Orleans after the drafting of former Michigan C/G Cesar Ruiz.
Like Brooks, Warford has been a Pro Bowler in each of the past three seasons and has never missed more than three games in a season. Despite only being 28 years old, Warford’s NFC Playoff experience is very valuable to a team with Championship aspirations and is a good fit for a relatively mature offensive line. The former third round pick is surprisingly still not on a NFL roster, so Philly should seize the opportunity to add him to their O-Line as soon as possible.
Jason Peters should also be under consideration to get re-signed as he brings continuity and embodies what it means to be a Philadelphia Eagle. While the Eagles would require the 9x All-Pro to move inside to Guard, a position he has zero experience playing in the league, he did say he was willing and able to play there to extend his football career. The Eagles lost all the versatility on their OL in the offseason, but still have plenty of time to construct a quality backup plan in place for Brooks’ absence.
EAGLES O-LINE OUTLOOK: B+
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