Eagles 2025 Position Group Report Cards: Defensive Line

The Eagles' defensive line entered the 2025 season with a massive question mark hanging over it. After losing both Josh Sweat and Milton Williams in free agency — Sweat departing for a lucrative deal and Williams signing a $26 million AAV contract with New England — this unit needed players to step up. The short answer? They did. But it wasn't always pretty, and the inconsistency down the stretch ultimately contributed to a Wild Card exit against San Francisco.

Grade: B

Jalen Carter: The Unquestioned Anchor

Let's start with the obvious. Jalen Carter is a monster, and his second Pro Bowl selection in as many years only begins to tell the story. When healthy, Carter was the most dominant interior defensive lineman in the NFC, drawing constant double teams that opened up opportunities for everyone around him. His signature moment came in the Divisional Round of the previous year's Super Bowl run, but in 2025, Carter remained a force — finishing with 3.0 sacks in just 11 games after missing three contests with shoulder injuries that required a mid-season procedure on both shoulders.

The concern here isn't talent. It's durability. Carter's absence during Weeks 14-16 was felt immediately, and while the Eagles managed to clinch the NFC East without him, the defense looked noticeably less disruptive up front. For a player who just turned 24 and is approaching a massive extension, the Eagles need Carter available for 17 games. Period. When he's on the field, he's a top-five interior defender in football. When he's not, there's a void nobody can fully fill.

Jordan Davis: The Breakout We've Been Waiting For

If there's a single player who defined the defensive line's 2025 story, it's Jordan Davis. The former first-round pick posted career highs across the board — 72 tackles, 4.5 sacks, six pass deflections, and even a blocked field goal returned for a touchdown. PFF graded him with an 86.3 pass-rush grade during the mid-season surge, and Next Gen Stats ranked him fourth among NFL defensive tackles in run stops.

Davis stepped into a leadership role vacated by years of veteran presence, and he didn't just fill it — he owned it. Even after Brandon Graham came out of retirement and moved inside to defensive tackle, it was Davis running the room. The $8,000-fine era from his early career feels like ancient history. This is a grown man who plays with purpose now, and the Eagles' decision to invest in him at pick 13 in 2022 finally looks like the home run everyone projected.

The question going forward is whether Davis can sustain this level. His snap count increased significantly, and maintaining this production over a full 17-game slate plus playoffs will be the 2026 test.

Moro Ojomo: The Seventh-Round Gem

Ojomo's rise has been one of the quieter success stories on this roster. A seventh-round pick in 2023, Ojomo earned an 82.4 PFF pass-rush grade during the Super Bowl LIX run and carried that momentum into 2025. He led the team's defensive tackles in run-defense grade at 85.6 during the mid-season stretch and proved he belongs in a significant rotational role.

He didn't stuff the stat sheet with sacks, but his 39 pressures during the championship season showed a player who consistently wins his matchups. Ojomo is the kind of depth piece that separates good defensive lines from great ones, and the Eagles would be wise to lock him up before he prices himself out of Philadelphia.

Brandon Graham: One More Ride

What do you even say about BG at this point? The legend came out of retirement midway through the season, switched to defensive tackle, and gave the Eagles quality snaps when they needed them most — particularly during Carter's absence. Graham didn't put up gaudy numbers, but his presence in the locker room and his ability to mentor Davis and the younger players was invaluable.

Whether this was truly Graham's last ride remains to be seen, but his willingness to answer the call at 37 years old speaks volumes about what this franchise means to him.

The Depth: Gabe Hall, Byron Young, Ty Robinson

The rotation pieces were fine. Not spectacular, not disastrous — just fine. Gabe Hall showed flashes of his raw athleticism, and Byron Young provided adequate run defense in limited snaps. But this is an area where the loss of Milton Williams was most felt. The Eagles went from having a deep, versatile rotation to one that was adequate but lacked a true difference-maker behind Carter and Davis.

Edge Rush: Jalyx Hunt and the Next Generation

With Sweat gone, the edge rush needed new blood. Jalyx Hunt led the group with six pressures during a key mid-season stretch and showed the kind of burst that made him a draft-day riser. Jaelan Phillips and Joshua Uche provided veteran presence, but the edge group as a whole lacked the consistent pressure that Sweat provided for years. Azeez Ojulari's season-ending injury didn't help matters.

The Bottom Line

This defensive line accomplished a lot with less star power than the Super Bowl LIX unit. Davis' breakout was the headline, Carter remained elite when available, and Ojomo proved he's a building block. But the Wild Card loss to San Francisco exposed the depth issues that losing Sweat and Williams created. The Eagles need to address edge rush in the 2026 draft, and they need Carter healthy for a full season.

A B grade feels right. The ceiling was A-plus when everyone was healthy and clicking. The floor — the three-game losing streak in Weeks 11-13 when Carter was out — was closer to C-plus. Split the difference, and you've got a unit that did its job but left you wanting more.