Connor Barwin is a defensive player of the year candidate

After his three-and-a-half sack performance on Monday Night Football against the Carolina Panthers, Philadelphia Eagles outside linebacker Connor Barwin has put himself on the radar to be a defensive player of the year candidate.

Through nine games this season, Barwin has 10.5 sacks, 35 combined tackles, four pass deflections, and a forced fumble. His 10.5 sacks are only second to Kansas City Chiefs outside linebacker Justin Houston, who has 12. Houston also has very similar numbers to Barwin as he has 37 combined tackles, a forced fumble, and a pass deflection. Both players can give opposing offenses trouble on all three downs.

For Barwin, many NFL analysts were not talking about him a lot as being an impact player on the Eagles defense. In fact, they mentioned the names of inside linebacker DeMeco Ryans and free safety Malcolm Jenkins, which is warranted when looking at what they bring to the table. Ryans was the leader on defense as Eagles head coach Chip Kelly called him their Mufasa as the announcement came that he would miss the rest of the season due to an achillies  injury.

Jenkins, who the Eagles picked up in free agency, has been a stud and the leader of the secondary. He has set a tone that it is a no fly zone when he is back there as he has 41 combined tackles and three interceptions. Without the likes of Ryans, Barwin has taken the challenge to step into the leader position.

If we look at his projected stats for the rest of the season, Barwin is on pace for 62 combined tackles and 20 sacks. If Barwin can get to 20 sacks, that would be a career high for the sixth-year linebacker out of Cincinnati.

Barwin’s highest sack total in his career came in 2011 with the Houston Texans when he recorded 11.5. During that season, Barwin played in all 16 games, had seven pass deflections, 49 combined tackles and a forced fumble in a 3-4 playoff caliber defense.

Barwin is flourishing in the second year of Billy Davis’s defense, who also runs the 3-4. Last season when the defense was just getting the hang of the 3-4 concept, Barwin only had five sacks but he managed to record 12 pass deflections.

As the rest of the season continues, Barwin will have chances to make plays against high-powered offenses such as the Green Bay Packers and Dallas Cowboys. In the end, Barwin is the key for the Eagles to be successful and make a playoff run without Ryans.