Last night, the Eagles continued their free agent frenzy but this time it was out of necessity. With injuries to Mike Patterson(AVM), Trevor Laws (hip flexor or boo boo), Victor Abiamiri(unspecified, probably a paper cut. Update: Eskin says torn ACL. Update 2: McLane confirms it's Achilles tendon, not ACL) and now Antonio Dixon(mild knee sprain), defensive tackle is very thin for the Eagles. It is so thin that Cedric Thornton is the only DT practicing with Jenkins not being able to practice until the new league year starts after 4 pm today. The Eagles replenished the position by signing defensive tackles Anthony Hargrove and Derek Landri to one year deals.
Hargrove, 28, has played in 87 games(25 starts) for the Rams, Bills, and Saints. In his career so far, he racked up 155 tackles and 16.5 sacks. He has played snaps at both defensive tackle and end. He was suspended the entire 2008 season due to repeated substance abuse violations but is now supposedly a changed man. Hargrove can play well as he proved with the 2009 world champion Saints. That year, he played in all 16 games(started six), accumulated 42 tackles and 5 sacks. He is a solid run defender that can pressure the quarterback and could be a good fit with Washburn.
Derek Landri, 27, is a fifth year pro out of Notre Dame who played in 51 games. He played sparingly for the Jaguars and Panthers his first three seasons. Last season, he started all 16 games for the Panthers and logged 43 tackles and 3 sacks. He is also a solid run defender(26 stops) that could put some pressure on the quarterback. He is a good young talent who still has room to grow.
These are not necessarily huge impact players but players with starting experience that bring much needed depth to the Eagles, considering the injuries to the position. Washburn will rotate defensive tackles as well as ends so these two players have a decent chance of making the team and contributing to this Eagle defense.