Before the start of the 2023 regular season, Philadelphia Eagles defensive end Derek Barnett received permission from the team to seek a trade elsewhere. The desire at the time was so Barnett could get more playing time on a new team, as the edge rusher depth chart was loaded with the likes of Josh Sweat, Haason Reddick, and Brandon Graham. Ultimately, Barnett and the Eagles couldn't find a taker by the Oct. 31 trade deadline.
On Friday, ESPN senior NFL insider Adam Schefter reported that the Eagles waived Barnett. With that, Barnett will wait and see if he will be claimed off waivers, or if he will get to choose which team he will play for if he clears and hits free agency.
Here are three teams that should take a chance on the former 2017 first-round pick.
Chiefs should swipe the former Eagles pass rusher after Week 11 loss
Back in Week 11, the Kansas City Chiefs hosted the Eagles in a Super Bowl 57 rematch on Monday Night Football. Even though the Chiefs led 17-7 entering halftime, they lost 21-17 to the Eagles. How about the Chiefs bring in a former Eagles player to help out a strength of the team -- the pass rush?
The Chiefs defense held the Eagles offense and quarterback Jalen Hurts at bay for most of the game. Kansas City limited Philadelphia to just 238 yards of offense and sacked Hurts five times for a loss of 26 yards. Even though the team limited the Eagles' high-powered offense, wide receiver drops ultimately doomed the Chiefs.
Kansas City has a legitimate pass rusher in George Karlaftis, who has developed significantly in less than two years with the team. Not to mention, the team has Chris Jones on the interior of the defensive line and led the team with 7.5 sacks.
Barnett hasn't played much this season, as he was limited to just 99 snaps, where he just recorded three tackles and two run stops in that amount of playing time.
It's unknown if Barnett will get any significant playing time in the final month-plus of the season. But if a team wants to stack up on the defensive line, it certainly wouldn't hurt to put a claim in. If the Chiefs want to go scorched Earth to improve their chances of winning their third Super Bowl title in the past five years, adding a former first-rounder in Barnett wouldn't hurt.
Raiders could bolster playoff odds and pass rush with Derek Barnett
The Las Vegas Raiders were trending outside of playoff eligibility with head coach Josh McDaniels at the helm. But after a 26-14 loss to the Detroit Lions, Raiders owner Mark Davis fired McDaniels and general manager Dave Ziegler. With McDaniels out, Davis promoted linebackers coach Antonio Pierce to interim head coach. Thus far, the team is playing inspired football and is firmly in the playoff discussion after winning two of their next three games following McDaniels' firing.
Las Vegas' pass rush unit is led by Maxx Crosby, who has 10.5 sacks to his credit entering Week 12. Behind him with the second-most sacks is linebacker Robert Spillane with 2.5.
In terms of pressures, Crosby leads with 39 with Malcolm Koonce ranking second with 20.
The team does have 2022 first-round pick Tyree Wilson, who has played in every game this season but hasn't been able to get to the quarterback much. In 176 pass-rush snaps, Wilson recorded six pressures, four quarterback hurries, and two sacks.
If the Raiders want to keep their playoff hopes intact for the remainder of the season, adding Barnett to their pass rush could help. Again, it wouldn't hurt since they play the Kansas City Chiefs twice in this final stretch of the season and the surging Denver Broncos once.
Ravens should stack their pass rush depth in tough battle for AFC North battle
Remember last year when fans and media members thought the AFC West was going to be a gauntlet with the quarterbacks leading all four teams? Well, the AFC North is that, but with defenses.
The Cleveland Browns have arguably the most dominant defense in the NFL and are helping lead the team to wins, even with quarterback Deshaun Watson out for the season. Then there are the Pittsburgh Steelers, whose defense has done the same, overcoming their lackluster offense. Then there are the Baltimore Ravens, who sit atop the division with an 8-3 record. The thing is, both the Browns (7-3) and Steelers (6-4) are not far behind them in the standings.
While the defenses of Cleveland and Pittsburgh have garnered attention, Baltimore's pass rush has been sneaky good. After all, they lead the entire NFL with 44 sacks. Fourth-year defensive tackle Justin Madubuike leads the team with 9.5 sacks, with edge rushers Jadaveon Clowney and Kyle Van Noy tied for second with six sacks each. Speaking of Clowney and Van Noy, they both rank atop the team with most quarterback pressures. Clowney leads the team with 33, with Van Noy having 29.
The numbers of Baltimore's pass rush unit has been doing well so far this season. But if they want to hold back Cleveland and Pittsburgh, adding Barnett to their depth chart could be something for them to look at. Who knows, maybe he can thrive under defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald.
