Over the next few weeks leading up to training camp, we’ll be counting down the top 25 most important Eagles for the 2025 season.
25. Andrew Mukuba
24. Jahan Dotson
23. Tanner McKee
22. Tyler Steen
21. Azeez Ojulari
20. Moro Ojomo
19. Kelee Ringo
18. Jihaad Campbell
17. Jalyx Hunt
16. Jordan Davis
15. Reed Blankenship
14. Dallas Goedert
13. Cam Jurgens
12. Nolan Smith
11. Landon Dickerson
10. Cooper DeJean
9. Quinyon Mitchell
8. DeVonta Smith
7. Jordan Mailata
6. Zack Baun
The Eagles entered the offseason after winning Super Bowl LIX with one big goal: Don’t let Zack Baun walk out the door.
After his incredible 2024 season, Baun this offseason signed a three-year, $51 million contract extension that will keep him in Philadelphia through the 2027 season.
Baun, 28, initially signed a one-year deal to join the Eagles in the 2024 offseason and was expected to be a situational edge rusher and special teamer. But Vic Fangio saw something in Baun and in the spring plugged him in at inside linebacker, where he went on to have an All-Pro season. Baun was the best linebacker in the NFL in 2024 and was fifth in Defensive Player of the Year voting.
During the Super Bowl season, Baun absolutely filled up the stat sheet: 151 tackles, 3 1/2 sacks, 11 TFLs, 5 QB hits, 5 FFs, 4 PBUs, 1 INT. And he was similarly dominant in the playoffs with 33 tackles, 2 TFLs, 3 PBUs, 1 FF and 2 INTs in four games.
But scary thought: Baun actually thinks he could be better in 2025.
“That’s a good question,” Baun said after signing his extension. “I look at my highlights sometimes and it’s hard for me, in my football mind, to look at the highlights and not think about the plays that I missed in that game. Or after a game, we win the game by 30 points and all I can think about is the two plays that I let up or the three plays I had bad coverage. I’m a perfectionist in that way.
“I felt like toward the end of the season, I was playing so confidently that I knew I was going to make a play and I just couldn’t tell you what it was going to be or when or where. But I’m excited to build off that confidence and continue to find myself in this scheme.”
It’s hard to imagine Baun’s numbers getting any better than they were in 2024 but it makes sense that an inside linebacker would have a much better base of knowledge in Fangio’s defense going into Year 2. The Eagles will need Baun to be dynamic again this season.
It’s unclear who will be starting next to Baun at inside linebacker this season. Both Nakobe Dean (knee) and rookie Jihaad Campbell (shoulder) are coming back from injuries, which meant second-year player Jeremiah Trotter Jr. was playing next to Baun this spring.
One good thing for the Eagles is that Baun is versatile enough to play either inside ‘backer position and even took over green dot responsibilities after Dean’s injury in the playoffs.
“I just think about what we did in one year with so many new pieces, coaches and players included,” Baun said. “And I think about my own personal development in that same sense where if I can move off the ball and play inside linebacker and do what I did and that was kind of my starting point, I’m excited for this team and this defense moving forward. I’m really excited to move forward and build off of what we did last year.”
