Nick Sirianni 'excited' about next man up following Nakobe Dean's season-ending injury
The Philadelphia Eagles have advanced to the divisional round of the NFL playoffs, but they're going to have to do so without one of their lead tacklers in starting linebacker Nakobe Dean. Dean tore the patellar tendon in his knee during Sunday's wild card playoff win over the Green Bay Packers and is out for […]
The Philadelphia Eagles have advanced to the divisional round of the NFL playoffs, but they're going to have to do so without one of their lead tacklers in starting linebacker Nakobe Dean.
Dean tore the patellar tendon in his knee during Sunday's wild card playoff win over the Green Bay Packers and is out for the rest of Philly's playoff run.
"[LB] Nakobe [Dean] has had a great year," Sirianni confirmed Dean's status on Monday. "As you guys saw in the reports, he’s going to be out, and we sure will miss him. He has made big plays all year long. One that comes to everyone’s mind is going to be the interception against Jacksonville to seal the game. ….He loves football, and how much time he spends working on this game of football and being able to diagnose plays. He lights up the puller with just that physical toughness play. You saw everything of who Nakobe is in that play. Bam, good football IQ. Boom, physical toughness.
"Yeah, we’ll miss him, that’s for sure. Got a lot of faith in the guys in that room, but we’ll for sure miss Nakobe."
Dean finished the Eagles' regular season racking up 128 tackles, three sacks, nine tackles for loss, six QB hits, and an interception.
While Dean's absence will certainly be felt, Sirianni is stoked for the next man up: Oren Burks.
Burks, who is in his seventh NFL season, totaled 41 tackles, two forced fumbles, and one defended pass for the Birds in 2024.
Sure, Burks' role on defense was limited, but his 319 snaps on special teams kept him busy, and transferred well over to his defensive snap opportunities — something Sirianni pointed out earlier this week.
"He’s been such a dynamic player for us on special teams, and that’s a great predictor of how you can play as a linebacker with all the physical tools," Sirianni said. "How you’re going to do there. It’s obviously a different mental game. But what a great indicator of how you are as a linebacker as far as how you tackle, how you get off blocks, et cetera, is how you do it on special teams when there is a lot of space to do it in.
"So he’s done a great job. Great person. Great teammate. Really enjoy having him on this team. He’s had to step in and play just like so many of our guys have had to step in and play this year. Because it’s a long, long, long season, and you’re going to need everybody. You’re going to need all bodies. You’re going to need everybody ready to roll. Oren has been consistently ready to play and played well and performed well every time he’s stepped onto the field.
"As bummed as I am that Nakobe doesn’t get to play, I’m excited for Oren and his opportunity to play."
Behind Burks, the Eagles also have rookie linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr. to turn to.
