Last season was supposed to be Derek Barnett's breakout year. He got off to a solid start, recording 2.5 sacks in six games, which put him on pace to have a better year than his five sack rookie season. However, in the Week 6 game against the Carolina Panthers, Barnett suffered a shoulder injury. It seemed at first that it could only sideline him for a few weeks, but the team surprisingly placed him on Injured Reserve -- ending his season. It turned out that Barnett needed rotator cuff surgery.
Barnett did not play in any preseason games this year, but he was active in practices and got in tons of reps. Doug Pederson said he is good to go for Sunday's season opener against the Washington Redskins.
This will be a very important year for Barnett. Entering his third season, the jury is still out on him. Can he turn into a double-digit sack rusher? Or has he already showed up his ceiling?
He will need to prove to the Eagles' brass that he is the players they thought he was when they used a 1st round pick on him in 2017.
He is eligible to sign a contract extension after the season, so if he plays well then Roseman might want to lock him up immediately. If he has a disappointing season Roseman might have to used an early draft pick in 2020 to address the defensive end position and look to move on from Barnett.
