Jonathan Gannon will return to Philadelphia as the Eagles defensive coordinator, but fans and one Hall of Fame safety want to see more growth and development.
Gannon will never be Jim Johnson, Philadelphia’s legendary play-caller, but fans and more importantly, Brian Dawkins want to see the Eagles’ current defensive coach utilize a more aggressive approach going forward.
During a recent sitdown with NBC Sports Philadelphia’s John Clark, Dawkins seemed impressed by what first-year defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon showed him later in the season.
“He grew a whole lot,” Dawkins said. “Was not a fan at all of the first part of the season because it was too vanilla. And it’s not a knock on him. It’s just that you can’t give NFL quarterbacks what they’re going to see at the snap. You have to be able to move around, you have to put some confusion in their head — just a little bit — you can’t give them exactly what they’re going to see snap after snap after snap after snap. They’re going to eat you up.”
Even after helping Philadelphia reach the postseason and finish among the NFL’s top defensive units statistically, fans urgently clamored for Gannon to move on or return with a more aggressive and more versatile approach to the Eagles defense.
With Philadelphia having three first-round picks and the cap space to make key signings, the Eagles defense should have a completely different look in 2022.