Philadelphia Eagles: 3 Statistics to improve on in 2017

1. Sacks

I mentioned before that the hole at cornerback may still be there in 2017. Had Jones been healthy this year, he would have quickly filled the open spot for the Eagles. But, since he will likely sit out the entire season, it will be interesting to see how the position unfolds.

My guess is that the hole at cornerback will be evident once again and other players on the defense will need to step up. That is why this next statistic is the most important stat that needs to improve in 2017: sacks.

The Eagles had 34 total sacks last season, which had them at 16th best in the NFL or right in the middle of the pack. In 2017, the Eagles need to be in the top five. If they can get after the quarterback this year, they will help hide the blemish on their defense. It is simple, the quicker they get to the quarterback, the less time the cornerbacks need to cover.

Defensive end Brandon Graham received a lot of love from Pro Football Focus in 2016, ranking him the No. 2 edge defender. The only problem is that Graham had five and a half sacks. He needs that number to double this year for his team to be successful. Defensive tackle Fletcher Cox had six and a half sacks last year but has shown in the past he can do even better. The addition of Jernigan will help because he is a better pass rusher than Logan. And having Barnett could be huge for the Eagles. He was arguably the best pass rusher in college football last season.

Next: NFL Power Rankings 2017: Best Players by jersey number

All of those defensive linemen added together should make for an improved pass rush in 2017. Philly may have the best defensive line in the NFL; they just need to prove it by getting after the quarterback and improving on their sack numbers from last season.