Bryce Huff was a third-down terror last season for the New York Jets.
However, he struggled to be a three-down option.
Following his 10-sack 2023 campaign, Huff inked a three-year, $51 million contract with the Philadelphia Eagles. His financial windfall, though, doesn’t guarantee he’ll be able to excel as an every-down defender for his new squad, at least not yet.
“I do think he has the talent to do what we want him to do,” new Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio said Thursday, via team transcript, of Huff moving from a pass rush specialist to playing on base downs. “It’s just he’s got to get familiar with doing it. So, it will be a work in progress. Does he look like he can do it today? No. I do think he eventually will.”
Fangio’s not one to mince words, but a quick glance shows Huff has been a quarterback-crunching maven and a run-stopping liability. He drew an outstanding 86.8 pass-rush grade from PFF, but a less-than-stellar 48.0 mark in run defense. During the 2023 season, he racked up 334 pass rush snaps, but nary 134 run defense snaps.
Huff is a pass rusher who will need to become a full-time starter.
Entering his fifth NFL season, Huff’s had just seven starts in 54 career games and is coming off a campaign in which he set a new career high with just 29 total tackles.
Sacking the QB gets you paid, as Huff did, but stopping the run keeps you on the field, which Fangio and Co. are looking for him to do.
“Constantly show improvement,” said Fangio when asked what Huff needs to do be an all-down player. “It’s more of a feel. He has the talent to do it, but he's never been asked to do it I don't think in college nor with the Jets.
“So, it's new and he has to become more proficient at it.”