Priced out in Philadelphia, linebacker Connor Barwin banking on fresh start with Rams
VINCENT BONSIGNORE
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/barwin-747286-eagles-phillips.html
In a perfect world, Connor Barwin would still be with the Philadelphia Eagles, preparing to master his second season as a 4-3 defensive end.
Even if it meant taking a pay cut, something he was willing to do to stay in Philadelphia and help the Eagles rebuild to the next level.
The NFL is hardly a perfect world, though.
More specifically, the unforgiving salary cap system in which teams too often are forced to make decisions based on number-crunching rather than performance.
Barwin being a case in point, lest you think the still-productive edge pass-rusher just showed up three weeks ago on the open market for any old reason.
Or why the Rams, looking for an outside linebacker to play in new defensive coordinator Wade Phillips’ 3-4 defense, quickly swooped in to secure the 30-year-old to a one-year contract worth $6.5 million.
The Rams and Barwin are a marriage made in football heaven.
But only the result of a divorce provoked by fiscal convenience rather than a falling out.
The Eagles, in need of skill players and protection for young quarterback Carson Wentz but with only $7 million in cap space, desperately needed to create financial wiggle room as they approached free agency.
Their focus immediately turned to the defensive line, where an inordinate amount of cap space was devoted.
Barwin, a veteran pass-rusher whose numbers dipped last season after the Eagles switched from a 3-4 scheme to a 4-3 – and who was about to enter the final two years of a back-loaded contract – was an easy target.
After unsuccessfully trying to trade him, the Eagles approached him about restructuring his contract. Barwin was receptive, but not to the extent the Eagles needed. Out of options and desperate for cap flexibility, the Eagles released him.
In doing so, they created a $7.75 million windfall to devote to free agency.
As for Barwin, he was just collateral damage in an imperfect NFL world.
Sans the hard feelings.
“There’s a lot of money in that defensive line room in Philadelphia,” he said. “And I think they wanted to use that money, probably smartly, to help out Carson Wentz and load up on some wide receivers and offensive linemen.”
That door closed, two others soon opened.
One offered a pathway back to Southern Ohio, where Barwin first emerged as an NFL prospect 10 years ago as a college star at Cincinnati.
The other was in Los Angeles, where the Rams dangled a chance to reunite with Phillips, who coached Barwin in Houston from 2011-12, and an opportunity to switch back to the more comfortable upright outside linebacker position he previously flourished in.
Two of Barwin’s best seasons came while lining up as a 3-4 Sam ‘backer, posting 11.5 sacks under Phillips in 2012 and 14.5 with the Eagles in 2014.
Nostalgia can be a powerful persuader, which is why Barwin gave the Bengals serious consideration.
But the chance to re-connect with Phillips trumped a return to his old college stomping grounds.
“Ultimately, I felt it was the better opportunity for me to be in L.A.,” Barwin said. “Being in a defense I’ve been successful in and a defense Wade’s had a ton of success with in this league.”
The presence of Phillips being a significant factor.
Barwin first crossed paths with Phillips in 2011 after playing his first two NFL seasons as a defensive end. The Texans defense was among the worst in the league at the time, but with Phillips implementing his highly successful 3-4 scheme – moving Barwin to linebacker in the process – Houston immediately grew into one of the best defenses in the NFL and Barwin emerged as a pass-rushing force.
Five years later, Barwin is eager to reunite with a coach he credits with pointing his career in the right direction.
“I’m excited, I’m really excited,” Barwin said. “Obviously Wade did a lot for my career in the two years I was with him in Houston. He taught me so much about being a pro, enjoying being around the game every single day, and really from a football standpoint, he really elevated my game as a pass-rusher.”
And it’s obvious how much better Barwin is in the 3-4 as opposed to the 4-3.
In three seasons playing linebacker in the Eagles’ 3-4, Barwin had 26.5 sacks, 184 tackles, five forced fumbles and 24 pass deflections.
But when new Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz moved Barwin to right defensive end last year in a 4-3 scheme – where he lined up in a three-point stance – the numbers dipped to 34 tackles, five sacks, two pass deflections and one forced fumble.
Barwin is naturally protective of his performance, pointing out the move from the left side to the right posed more problems than the actual position change, and that the Eagles defense as a whole was still adjusting to a new system.
“There were a lot of reasons why we didn’t get as much pressure as we would have liked,” he said. “And I think that front in Philadelphia is going to be a lot better. It’s going to be Jim Schwartz’s second year, Chris Wilson’s second year as the D-line coach. I think if I would have stayed I would have be better as well.”
Perhaps.
But the reality is, at 6-foot-3 and 253 pounds, he’s simply better-suited playing outside linebacker. From his Sam ‘backer spot – and still blessed with above-average athletic ability – Barwin has the versatility to rush the passer or drop back in coverage either as a zone defender or in man-to-man. And when Phillips gets creative, Barwin is a piece he can confidently move up and down the line of scrimmage to create confusion for the opposing offense.
Just as importantly, when down and distance forces the Rams into nickel coverage – meaning Barwin lining up in a three-point stance at end – he’ll do so from the more comfortable left side with Aaron Donald and Robert Quinn to his right.
Point being, he’s a perfect fit for what Phillips is asking of a defense that’s been the strength of the Rams the last two seasons.
And one Barwin is eager to supplement.
“It’s already a defense that shows up on film the last couple years that plays really hard,” Barwin said. “And I pride myself on being a guy that plays hard every single play so I’ll fit right in with the group.”
.
