Tavern Talk: Can Eagles Close Their Gap?

National Football Post Losing Stewart Bradley is a tough blow to the Eagles. On the surface, his numbers are not overwhelming in terms of sacks, or even tackles, but his physical presence at a critical position is something that will be hard to duplicate. As I wrote in the Sunday Post, the Jim Johnson style of defense is similar to the Buddy Ryan defense, but instead of having a nose guard, they have a very big middle linebacker to control the gaps with power. The position doesn’t require an instinctive player as much as it requires size and power. If the middle backer gets pushed around running through the gaps, the defense will lose its gap discipline and create running lanes. Last year, the Eagles were the fourth best run defense in the NFL, and the third best first-down defense in not allowing four yards or more. This is a critical component of the Eagles’ defense because if it can keep the offense in second-and-long or third-and-long, it opens up a plethora of blit...