PFF: Stephen Tulloch Is The Top Free Agent Inside LB

We've spent a good amount of time over the last two weeks lamenting the state of the Eagles LBs and previewing who might be available to help in free agency or the draft. We've had members of the community making the case for London Fletcher and David Hawthorne...

So why not keep up the call for the LBs today? Pro Football Focus ranked the top available inside linebackers set to hit free agency. At #1, they've got the wide-9 experienced Stephen Tulloch.

We were stunned at how small the market was for one of the league’s best inside linebackers in the 2011 offseason. The Lions were able to snag him for a mere $3.25 million, but there’s slim chance they’ll be so lucky again. Tulloch is just a great all-around player, as adept in coverage as he is against the run. While he doesn’t grade out quite as well as some of the top players, it is worth bearing in mind he plays in the very publicized Wide-9 scheme that puts extra pressure on the linebackers.

I actually was surprised to hear that he had graded out so well against the pass, as he'd always struck me as deficient in that area... But clearly, this is a guy who would be a tremendous upgrade to the Eagles current corps.

Yesterday, Saukrates made the case for David Hawthorne from the Seahawks, which he'll be happy to hear is a move that PFF would endorse. They've got Hawthorne as their #2 ranked ILB.