PHILADELPHIA − The Eagles apparently aren’t done adding veteran defensive tackles as they signed Ndamukong Suh to a one-year contract Thursday.
That came one day after the Eagles signed Linval Joseph to a one-year deal.
ESPN was the first to report the deal, which the Eagles confirmed. Suh, who’s 35 years old, was the No. 2 overall pick in 2010, by the Detroit Lions.
That makes two defensive tackles who are in their mid-30s signed this week, going along with Fletcher Cox, who’s 31, and Javon Hargrave, who’s 29.
They are replacing rookie first-round pick Jordan Davis, who went on injured reserve after the Oct. 30 game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, and second-year man Marlon Tuipulotu, who went on IR on Wednesday.
The Eagles’ run defense has suffered since Davis was injured. They have averaged allowing 158 rushing yards in the two games Davis has missed so far.
Players on IR have to miss at least four games. Davis would be eligible to return on Dec. 4 after suffering an ankle injury. But Suh’s signing could be an indication that he’ll be out longer than that. Tuipulotu has a knee injury that could also keep him out beyond the four-week mark.
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Eagles defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon, speaking to the media before Suh’s signing, said Joseph, who’s 6-foot-4, 329 pounds, has been known as a run stopper ever since he came into the NFL as the Giants’ second-round pick in 2010.
Gannon was on the Vikings’ defensive staff from 2016-19, when Joseph played for Minnesota.
“He’s a really good player against the run,” Gannon said. “Then with Marlon getting hurt, we needed to add another piece there. I was with Linval for four years. He’s a really good player. His attitude is right. His character is great. He practices extremely hard. He is diligent. He kind of fits right into what we do and how he wants to play and what he wants to do, and I think it’ll help us.”
Eagles center Jason Kelce also went against Joseph several times in his career, beginning in Kelce’s rookie year in 2011 when Joseph was with the Giants.
“He’s a tough matchup for me, for sure,” Kelce said, also before Suh’s signing. “Not only is he a very large human being, he’s very smart. That’s evident when I’ve played him before. He picks up on things quickly, formations, where the back’s at, he’s good at reading the offensive linemen.”
Suh will help too.
Suh has been selected to the Pro Bowl five times in his previous 12 seasons. He played for Detroit from 2010-15, then Miami from 2015-17. He spent 2018 with the Rams, and the next three seasons with Tampa Bay, winning the Super Bowl in 2020.
Suh has 70.5 career sacks, including 6 last season. Incredibly, Suh had played in all but 2 games through his first 12 seasons, and the two games he missed were for an NFL suspension for an on-field incident in 2011.
That leaves Milton Williams, the Eagles’ third-round pick in 2021, as the only defensive tackle on the 53-man roster under the age of 29.
Contact Martin Frank at mfrank@delawareonline.com. Follow on Twitter @Mfranknfl.
