Eagles find themselves with a bounty of inside linebackers

THE INSIDE linebacker position in the middle of the Eagles' 3-4 defense was arguably the most inconsistent group on the roster last year.

That isn't necessarily an indictment of the results, but more or less a mention of the injuries and lack of depth that ravaged the bunch.

Now, it appears the middle of the Eagles' defense is the defense's strongest suit.

When coach Chip Kelly unloaded franchise-leading rusher LeSean McCoy to Buffalo for 3-4 inside linebacker Kiko Alonso, the position got a whole lot stronger, and a whole lot deeper.

Last year, it was a revolving door filled with injuries. DeMeco Ryans, the Eagles' defensive leader, tore his right Achilles' tendon against his former team, Houston, in Week 9. The team was already down Najee Goode, who went down for the season in Week 1 with a torn pectoral muscle, and Travis Long, who missed the entire year with a torn ACL.

Even Mychal Kendricks and Emmanuel Acho missed time toward the end of last season.

Depth was an extreme issue up the middle. And Kelly made it a point to remedy that in picking up Alonso, a former Oregon Duck. Alonso, who coincidentally missed all of his 2014 season with a torn ACL, was third in the NFL in tackles (159) in his rookie campaign in 2013, when he was named Defensive Rookie of the Year by the Pro Football Writers of America.

Kelly also drafted Jordan Hicks out of Texas in the third round earlier this month and brought in Brad Jones, a six-year veteran from the Green Bay Packers.

"We thought it was a priority for us, especially because of the injuries we've had at inside linebacker, to improve our depth there," Kelly said before Thursday's OTA session.

But the addition of depth, and talented depth at that, makes for a potential problem. Three of the Eagles' best defensive players are vying for time at two spots.

When Alonso arrived, the initial popular opinion was that Ryans would be out. But then trade rumors swirled around Kendricks, who recorded 77 solo tackles (four sacks) in 12 games last year.

Moving Kendricks, while surprising, wouldn't be all that unlike what Kelly's already done - get rid of Andy Reid-era players.

In Thursday's OTA, the first that allowed media access, Kendricks and Alonso initially appeared to be the "first-team" ILBs, but all three rotated reps throughout the day.

Alonso, a tall linebacker at 6-3, is back to full health a little less than a year since his ACL tear. He didn't even wear a brace, saying he doesn't like using one. Ryans is just about a full-go in his recovery from the second Achilles' injury of his career, this one on the opposite foot from the injury he suffered in 2010.

"We got another good player to help us out on defense," Ryans said when asked about his initial reaction to the acquisition of Alonso.

"We have some great depth," Ryans continued. "This is probably the best inside group we've had since I've been here. It's really great competition. I'm looking forward to seeing how things shake out throughout training camp."

"We have a lot of really good guys in the room," said Alonso, who donned a Phillies hat backward after Thursday's workout. "I think everyone's going to go out there and give it our best and do our best to help this team win."

That all sounds great, but the math is the math.

Alonso said no one had talked to him about the prospects of moving to outside linebacker, where Connor Barwin and the ever-improving Brandon Graham line up.

There isn't much of a learning curve for Alonso, who was part of a nearly identical defense while at Oregon. In his rookie year in Buffalo, defensive coordinator Mike Pettine ran a pretty similar 3-4 defense.

"Really, it's the same defense," Alonso said. "There's definitely some different things, but the biggest thing is the terminology."

So, how will it all shake out?

Kendricks and Alonso would appear to be the likely duo in obvious passing situations, given their strong reputation as coverage linebackers, and Ryans, who turns 31 in July, would likely be on the field in earlier running downs.

A rotation seems like the likeliest route right now, which would certainly help keep fresh bodies on the field.

Asked whether Alonso, Ryans and Kendricks could be on the field at the same time, Kelly began his answer by saying, "We're on May 28."

He continued by alluding to the premature nature of predicting three months ahead of time who will play where: "We're just trying to get everybody up to speed and teaching Kiko the defense. Mychal and DeMeco have both done an outstanding job and have been here."

But what about when it's Aug. 16? Or Sept. 14?

Then the issue becomes much more timely. And it's probably a good issue to have.