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Eagles' Derek Barnett can flex his ankles like no other

When the defensive end turns the corner on tackles and plants his inside foot on the ground, he can bend at an angle that almost looks gruesome.

Defensive end Derek Barnett takes on Bills  tackle Seantrel Henderson during the preseason.
Defensive end Derek Barnett takes on Bills tackle Seantrel Henderson during the preseason.Read moreCLEM MURRAY / Staff

There's nothing special-looking about Derek Barnett's ankles. His size-15 feet, while wide, aren't especially big for a 6-foot-3, 259-pound man. But when the Eagles defensive end turns the corner on tackles and plants his inside foot on the ground, he can bend at an angle that almost looks grotesque.

"People used to always talk about my bend when I was younger," Barnett said. "But it was God-given talent."

"Bend" is just a football term for ankle flexion. The Eagles have used it often since drafting Barnett in the first round. They measured the angle of his bend at 51.5 degrees after one of his rushes against the Packers in the preseason opener. The normal range is 0-20 degrees.

Impressive as his bend sounds, why is Barnett's above-average ankle flexion important for an edge rusher? Eagles defensive end coach Chris Wilson said it's all about maintaining balance.

"Can I turn sideways and get all of my cleats flat-footed in the ground? Most people can't," Wilson said. "So they get on their toes, and when you get on your toes you tend to fall. And so he's able to keep a flat-footed base really well and that's a rarity."

Barnett said that playing so many youth sports  —  in particular, baseball and basketball  —  may have given him more flexibility beyond what came naturally. He said he also spends an inordinate amount of time on piriformis stretches that work his glutes.

"If you feel good, you play good," Barnett said.

While the rookie will start the season lined up on the right, Wilson said that Barnett can bend just as well on the opposite side.

"I look at six points of balance. … Can you bend your hips, knees and then your ankle flexion," Wilson said. "If you can bend at those six points, you usually have an opportunity to create negative plays because you can get in and out of tight corners and you can bend quicker than some other guys can.

"You can always improve what you have, but it's a gift. It's something that he found out quite early in his career. It's something we've got to accentuate because people are going to have a plan for him. What I've got to do is to get him to have complementary moves off of those."

For months this summer, the Eagles worked on adding complementary moves to Barnett's outside speed rush. The rookie worked on bull rushes, an inside spin, and a chop move. He had varying degrees of success with each during training camp.

He exploded in the preseason, however, recording three sacks, four quarterback hits and three tackles for losses. He was quieter in the third game when he filled in for the injured Brandon Graham on the left and had to face off against the Dolphins' starting right tackle.

But his preseason performance overall had Eagles offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland comparing him to future Hall of Fame end Dwight Freeney, and had many other predicting that he would eventually supplant starter Vinny Curry, who had trouble staying upright last season.

Wilson stressed that there was a lot more that goes into being an impact end than having great bend. Asked who had the best bend he ever saw, Wilson mentioned Chiefs Hall of Famer Derrick Thomas.

"Those are the exceptional guys," Wilson said, "but there are a lot more intangibles, obviously, that goes into being an elite rusher."

Barnett appears to have one already.

Jones on the mend

Sidney Jones may play this season, but the injured rookie cornerback, who was placed on the reserve/non-football injury list last week, can't play in the Eagles' first six games. After that, it's anybody's guess, although Jones recently said he would defer to the team.

"It's up to them," he said earlier this week. "I feel better than I did [at the start of training camp]. But they don't want to risk rushing me, especially if they don't need me right now."

They have time even after the six-game mark. The Eagles have three weeks to decide whether Jones can practice as part of the 53-man roster and then  —  if he returns to the practice field  —  another three weeks before deciding whether to place him on season-ending injured reserve.

There are a few factors at play. Jones' recovery from his ruptured Achilles tendon is paramount. The injury occurred in March  —  rehabilitation typically varies from 6-12 months  —  and Jones just returned to running this week.

The other variable is the play of the active cornerbacks. If starters Jalen Mills and Ronald Darby and slot Patrick Robinson can hold down the fort, what would be the point of rushing Jones, who is already months behind? Rookie corners also traditionally have steep learning curves.

"We have a long way to go and we want to make sure that we're getting the best of Sidney Jones," Howie Roseman, Eagles vice president of football operations, said last well. "I think one of the benefits of trading for Darby was that we won't have that inner urge to try to rush Sidney.

"But that being said, he's got an amazing work ethic."

Jones said he has been taking mental repetitions since the start of camp. His fellow cornerbacks said he asks questions in the meetings as if he were playing. Asked if he felt confident enough to start as soon as he returns  —  this year or next  —  Jones gave the affirmation.

"No doubt," he said.

Smallwood’s ready

Expectations for Wendell Smallwood entering 2016 may be lukewarm for some, but a notable number of the second-year running back's teammates believe he's the most likely Eagle to have a breakout season.

Smallwood finished third behind quarterback Carson Wentz and wide receiver Nelson Agholor in an informal poll of 48 of 53 players on the team. (For more, see Inside the Locker Room.)

Smallwood made an impression early in training camp, but a hamstring injury sidelined him and he missed two preseason games. But he returned for the Dolphins game and rushed four times  —  as many times as LeGarrette Blount did with the first team  —  for 28 yards.

Blount may open the season as the "starter," but coach Doug Pederson said that he will use his three primary running backs  —  Darren Sproles is the other  —  on a continuum basis. Smallwood, who rushed 77 times for 312 yards as a rookie, said that he expects more touches.

"I'm ahead on the depth chart so I know that the coaches are depending on me to make plays," Smallwood said. "I'm going to have the opportunities. I'm not really worried about how much I'm going to play, what plays I'm going to have.

"Now I know it's going to happen."

Blount averaged just 2.8 yards a carry in the preseason. The 30-year-old tailback is coming off a 1,000-yard, 18-touchdown performance last season, but he has struggled whenever he's played for teams other than the Patriots.

If Smallwood, who will also return kicks, is to steal carries from Blount, he must stay healthy. He missed most of last training camp with a quadriceps strain and most of the preseason with a concussion. And he suffered a season-ending knee tear in the fourth-to-last game of the regular season.

Smallwood said he's feels physically and mentally much better than he did heading into his first season.

"I know what's going on. I know the game plan," he said. "I know what we're trying to do and get done."

Five questions: Chris Long

  1. If you couldn't play the position you now play in the NFL, which position would you want to play? "Probably punter. Less pressure, slightly more bad ass than kicker."

  2. What's your least favorite part of the week practice leading up to a game? "Meetings and practice. Everything but the game."

  3. What's the hardest you've ever been hit? The hardest I was ever hit was probably by my own teammate. Probably Craig Dahl, safety, against the 49ers in 2012. We met over a tackle and hit each other. Or a corner against the Raiders in 2011. He played here. Bradley Fletcher."

  4. What's your favorite play you ever made? I guess drawing a hold in the Super Bowl. It was Jake Matthews. [The Falcons] were in field-goal range and it knocked them out. I guess it made it difference.

  5. If you didn't play football what career would you have? "Go build houses for the Peace Corp. I was always jealous of those people. Maybe work for Habitat for Humanity."

Inside the game

— Zach Ertz is likely to see an uptick in inside targets after the departure of slot receiver Jordan Matthews, but the preseason game against the Dolphins offered a glimpse of the tight end split wide. Ertz beat cornerback Byron Maxwell on an inside slant for 14 yards.

"I think I'm going to have the opportunity to move around a little more," Ertz said. "I think you saw it [against the Dolphins]. They lined me up all the way to the right, motioned Alshon [Jeffery] over, and I was the only guy out there."

The influx of quasi receiver-tight ends in the NFL, like Ertz, has forced defenses to carry smaller safeties with cornerback skill sets, according to Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz.

"There are a bunch of those guys around the league, whether it's [the Seahawks'] Jimmy Graham or whoever it is," Schwartz said. "They all line them up at wide receiver and you have to have the ability to cover."

— The Eagles don't have to announce which players from their 53-man roster are inactive until 90 minutes before Sunday's kickoff, but it's a safe bet that seven of these players will not dress against the Redskins: running backs Donnel Pumphrey and Corey Clement, wide receiver Shelton Gibson, guard Chance Warmack, defensive tackle Elijah Qualls, cornerbacks Dexter McDougle and Rasul Douglas, and linebacker Joe Walker.

The Eagles have five running backs, so either Pumphrey or Clement will be down, and likely both. Stefen Wisniewski can play all three interior offensive line positions, so Warmack isn't needed. And it's a tossup between McDougle, Douglas, and Walker for the last spot. Special teams will play a significant factor and McDougle, acquired last week in a trade, may not yet to be up to speed.

Inside the locker room

— Eagles players were polled to pick one player from the 53-man roster who they thought would have a breakout season. The results (two players were unavailable and two abstained): Carson Wentz 9 1/2, Nelson Agholor 7 1/2, Wendell Smallwood 5, Derek Barnett 4, Brandon Graham 3, Zach Ertz 3, Ronald Darby 2, Tim Jernigan 2, Jalen Mills 2, Isaac Seumalo 2, Torrey Smith 2, Beau Allen 1, Trey Burton 1, Vinny Curry 1, Jordan Hicks 1, Alshon Jeffery 1, Marcus Johnson 1, Rodney McLeod 1.

— Darby, unhappy with his original uniform choice of No. 35, switched to No. 41 earlier this week. The cornerback still wasn't pleased.

"I can't get nothing else," Darby said. … "It's like whether I kept the number or changed it wasn't going to be that good."

Darby said that he wanted a number in the 20s, but each one  —  minus Nos. 20 and 25   —  was taken. The Eagles retired 20 in honor of Brian Dawkins and they haven't given out 25 since LeSean McCoy was traded to the Bills.

"It's just a year for the most part," Darby said. "I'll just ride this year out."

By the numbers

32.8

Passer rating for Carson Wentz when under pressure (65 of 149 for 620 yards, one touchdown and nine interceptions) last season.

4

Percentage of passing down snaps in which LeGarrette Blount caught a pass (7 of 159) last season. The then-Patriots running back ran on 86 percent of running down snaps (299 of 346).

6.0

Yards per carry (56 rushes for 337 yards) the Redskins averaged in their two wins over the Eagles last season.