‘Excited to see him:’ Finally, a chance for Jeremiah Trotter to play defense originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
All you have to do to project what kind of linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr. can be is watch him on special teams.
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He’s fast, physical, smart and instinctive on special teams, and those are the qualities you expect to see when he makes his first start of the year Sunday against the Commanders.
“He’s got a full understanding of the defense,” all-pro Zack Baun said. “When he’s in there, he’s calling out where our blitz is coming from, he calls out for the d -line, he’s communicating with the safeties and helping the young safeties out. He’s wise beyond his years, for sure.”
Trotter has only played 19 defensive snaps this year, but he’s played 313 special teams snaps, second on the team and five fewer than Sydney Brown.
His only significant playing time on defense since the Eagles drafted him in the fifth round out of Clemson last year came at the end of his rookie season, when he got 23 snaps late in the blowout win over the Cowboys and 53 in the meaningless season-ender over the Giants.
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With the starters resting Sunday, Trotter is expected to start against the Commanders in the regular-season finale at the Linc.
To say he can’t wait is putting it mildly.
“Yeah, I’m excited for the opportunity,” he said at his locker Thursday. “I just can’t wait to go out there, play around with my guys and go out there and just play football.”
The few times we’ve seen Trott play linebacker – training camp, preseason games, the Giants game last year – he’s sure looked the part. Not surprising, considering his bloodlines.
Even without significant reps during the season, he believes he’s gotten better over the last few months.
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“If you’re not getting the physical reps, it’s going to be mental, and that’s how you get better,” he said. “I know it’s kind of cliche, ‘getting mental reps,’ and you hear it a lot. But it really does help out when you’re focusing and trying to get the rep mentally. You figure out how to learn from other people, the good plays the guys make and the bad plays and then when you go out there, remember it and apply it to your game.”
Trotter is backing up some elite inside linebackers, including Baun, rookie 1st-round pick Jihaad Campbell and elite playmaker Nakobe Dean.
It could be easy to get discouraged without a clear path to the starting lineup, but Trotter doesn’t look at it that way. Not even close.
“I mean, I’m living out my dream, playing football in the NFL at the highest level,” he said. “God has really blessed me a lot this year. And really, I’ve just been trying to play my role and be the best person I can be in my role to help the team get to where we want to be as a team.”
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And Trotter said he doesn’t have any problem putting his own personal desires on the backburner. He’s already got one Super Bowl ring, and he’d love to have another.
“I feel like for me, it’s not hard, because I understand that everybody has a role and when everybody buys into their role, no matter what it is, that’s when you have high-caliber teams that can not just do it one time like we did last year but have the opportunity to be able to do it again,” he said.
“And that’s a culture thing. When you’re able to build that culture and the guys in the locker room all believe in that, that’s how you get teams like the Chiefs and Patriots, teams that have won it back-to-back or back-to-back-to-back. And we’re still trying to work to do that, but we have another opportunity this year to be able to go back to the Super Bowl.”
Baun, who just made his second straight Pro Bowl, will be among the Eagles’ regulars who won’t be playing Sunday as coach Nick Sirianni tries to create a bye week heading into the playoffs.
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This year is a little different because there is something potentially at stake. If the Lions beat the Bears in Chicago, the Eagles would get the No. 2 seed in the NFC playoff bracket by beating the Commanders.
Baun will be watching as Trotter is part of a makeshift defense that will try to help deliver the Eagles their 12th win of the season.
“Just want to see him being a leader and running around and making plays,” Baun said. “I know he’s been itching to play since he got here, so every opportunity he gets in practice, he flies around and makes plays, so I’m excited to see him do it in the game.”
