Zack Baun is the most important non-quarterback in the Philadelphia Eagles locker room. He is a 2024 first-team All-Pro, the 2024 NFL Defensive Player of the Year runner-up, the player whose contract-year explosion (151 tackles, 3.5 sacks, 5 forced fumbles) anchored the Super Bowl LIX defense, and now the unquestioned veteran voice of the unit after Nakobe Dean signed with the Las Vegas Raiders in March 2026 free agency (3 years, $36 million, $20M guaranteed).
So when Baun talks publicly about what is happening inside the building, you listen carefully. And what he said about Vic Fangio's third year as Eagles defensive coordinator is the most consequential locker-room signal of the offseason.
"He says he's reverse aging. That's funny. Same old guy, same guy. I feel like he's taking things to the next level this year, in terms of he knows we are comfortable, we know our scheme, he knows us, he knows what we're capable of from a knowledge aspect. I think it's cool that he even within his own scheme he continues to develop and tweak and change to the personnel.", Zack Baun on Vic Fangio
That quote, given to PhillyVoice's Geoff Mosher in late May and reinforced in Caroline Connor's June Eagles.com follow-up, frames the entire 2026 defensive expectation. The Eagles' defense was already top-3 in the NFL in 2025. Baun is publicly saying it can be better.
Here is what "next level" actually means: schematically, by personnel, by historical comparison, and by the risks that could keep the next-level jump from happening.
What Fangio's "Reverse Aging" Year Actually Looks Like Schematically
PhillyVoice's Geoff Mosher (the original outlet that broke the Baun quote) identified five specific tactical shifts Fangio could make in 2026, each of which constitutes a meaningful step beyond his 2024-2025 install:
1. Cooper DeJean expanded into safety responsibilities
DeJean was a first-team All-Pro slot CB in 2025 (0 passing TDs allowed in his slot CB career). The natural Fangio progression is to expand his role: nickel package safety on early downs, slot CB on third-and-medium, post-snap rotations that disguise the coverage. DeJean has the size (6-1, 207) and football IQ to operate as a chess piece in a way that few NFL defenders can.
2. DeJean as a slot blitzer / fourth rusher
The Eagles ran a conservative blitz rate under Fangio in 2024-2025 (bottom-10 NFL). Adding DeJean as a fourth-rush option creates a fifth-rush threat that the 2025 defense did not credibly have. Defenses that get to the QB on 4-man rushes are elite. The Eagles already do that. Defenses that ALSO have a credible 5th-rush threat without losing coverage integrity are top-3 historically.
3. Increased man-coverage rate
The 2024-2025 Eagles ran zone-heavy under Fangio because the corner room was young (Mitchell, DeJean rookies in 2024) and Fangio prefers safe coverage in transitional years. With Mitchell and DeJean both as All-Pros now, plus Riq Woolen added in free agency, the corner room is veteran enough to run more man coverage on standard downs. That changes how offenses build their gameplans.
4. Higher blitz rate
Fangio is historically a conservative blitzer. But the Greenard addition + Carter's continued ascent + the trio of corners means he can blitz from depth without giving up the back-end coverage. A move from bottom-10 blitz rate to middle-of-the-pack would represent a real philosophical adjustment.
5. Front-seven creativity
The 2024-2025 Eagles ran a relatively static defensive front. Year 3 of the install allows for more pre-snap movement, more stunt and twist concepts on the interior, and more creative alignments out of base personnel. With Greenard added and Baun now operating as both an off-ball LB and a movable chess piece, the front can show more looks.
What Baun Said About the New Personnel (His Own Quotes)
Baun was specific about which 2026 additions excite him. From his Eagles.com June piece:
On Jonathan Greenard
"I know the things he can do on the field and the things he can bring to this defense. I'm super excited."
Greenard's 12-sack 2024 with Minnesota and the 4-year, $100M extension the Eagles signed him to means Baun's defense gets a top-12 edge rusher who has already publicly committed to playing off the interior (as we covered in the Greenard "I feed off y'all" piece earlier this week). Baun's endorsement of Greenard is the inside-locker-room confirmation that the trade fits the culture.
On Riq Woolen
"I remember seeing him when he came in to sign. I'm like, 'That guy is tall.' Super fast, super smooth."
Woolen at 6-4, 205 with 4.26 40-yard speed is the kind of physical outlier who lets Fangio run man coverage on outside leverage with safety help available. Baun's first-impression quote is a small but telling signal that the locker room already sees Woolen as a real addition, not just a 1-year flier.
What Baun Said About His Own Evolution
On his comfort in the system
"I feel I'm worried less now about what my responsibility is and can really hone into what the offense is doing."
This is the most important Baun quote in the piece. The transition from "learning the scheme" to "reading the offense" is the difference between a good defender and an All-Pro. Baun is saying he is operating at the second level. That is what Year 3 in a Fangio system is supposed to do for elite players.
On mentoring Jihaad Campbell (2025 1st-round pick, LB Alabama, #31 overall)
"It's been really cool thinking about how I'm the veteran teaching the younger guy little things. Just teaching small things like that I think are really influential to [Campbell] and his growth and development. You saw growth all throughout the season, so I'm really excited for him this upcoming season."
Campbell is entering his Year 2. He is the long-term LB1 succession piece. Baun publicly endorsing him and committing to the mentorship is the locker-room signal that the post-Nakobe-Dean LB room will function.
On Dean's departure
"It hurt to see him leave, but I'm happy to watch him go and I know he's going to succeed wherever he is. I thank him from the bottom of my heart."
On the new leadership structure
"Jordan Davis, myself, Cooper DeJean, Quinyon Mitchell. All the starters can take ownership in that leadership in the locker room, on the field and take charge, just as Nakobe did."
This is Baun publicly identifying the new leadership council: himself, Davis, DeJean, Mitchell. That is two interior defensive starters, the All-Pro nickel CB, and the All-Pro outside CB. Notably, Jalen Carter is NOT on the list, which fits the pattern of front-office caution on Carter's character / maturity that the Breer reporting flagged earlier this week.
The Year 3 Comparison: Macdonald, Flores, Wink
Vic Fangio's Year 3 with the Eagles in 2026 is comparable to the Year 3 jumps that other Fangio-tree DCs and Fangio-style coordinators produced:
Mike Macdonald, Baltimore Ravens (2022-2023)
- Year 1 (2022): 17.6 PPG allowed, #3 NFL defense
- Year 2 (2023): 16.5 PPG allowed, #1 NFL defense, led the league in turnover differential
- Macdonald became the Seahawks HC in 2024 on the basis of this Year 2 jump
Brian Flores, Minnesota Vikings (2023-2025)
- Year 1 (2023): aggressive blitz defense ranked top-10 in pressure rate
- Year 2 (2024): scheme refinement led to top-5 defensive DVOA and a 14-win season
- Year 3 (2025): the unit declined slightly due to personnel turnover, demonstrating both the upside AND the risk of multi-year scheme installs
Wink Martindale, Baltimore Ravens (2018-2020)
- Year 1 (2018): top-10 defense, established system identity
- Year 2 (2019): top-5 defense, expanded blitz packages
- Year 3 (2020): top-3 defense, peak of the install
The pattern: defensive systems built around a single coordinator's philosophy historically peak in Year 3, when the personnel knows the scheme well enough to operate at the second level (as Baun described) AND the coordinator knows the personnel well enough to design plays around their specific abilities (as Baun also described).
What the Eagles 2026 Defense Looks Like on Paper
Front Seven (projected starters):
- Edge: Jonathan Greenard, Nolan Smith Jr.
- Interior: Jalen Carter (3-tech), Jordan Davis (NT)
- Off-ball LB: Zack Baun, Jihaad Campbell
- Depth: Moro Ojomo, Ty Robinson, Jalyx Hunt, Bryce Huff, A.J. Epenesa, Jeremiah Trotter Jr.
Secondary (projected starters):
- Outside CB: Quinyon Mitchell, Riq Woolen
- Slot CB: Cooper DeJean (with safety expansion package)
- Safety: open competition (Marcus Epps and/or rookie additions after the Blankenship departure)
That is a unit with: 4 first-team All-Pro selections (Baun 2024, Mailata 2024, Mitchell 2025, DeJean 2025), 2 second-team All-Pro selections (Carter 2025, Dickerson 2023), and the most cost-controlled young core in the league.
The Risks That Could Prevent the Next-Level Jump
1. Carter contract distraction
The Jalen Carter extension situation remains unresolved. Albert Breer's reporting this week and John McMullen's mid-June reporting both framed the holdup as character / maturity concerns. If the negotiation drags into training camp, it creates locker-room tension that Fangio cannot scheme around.
2. Health
The 2025 Eagles defense was elite in part because they were healthy. A meaningful injury to Carter, Baun, Mitchell, or Greenard would significantly reduce the ceiling.
3. Safety position uncertainty
Reed Blankenship's March departure to Houston (4 years, $48M) left a hole that Marcus Epps and a competition battle will have to fill. The Eagles need a starting safety to emerge by training camp.
4. Offensive scheme fit
If the Sean Mannion offense struggles to convert third downs and the Eagles defense plays more snaps than expected, the unit fatigues faster across the season. A poor offense produces a worse defense by Week 12.
The Bottom Line
Zack Baun's "next level" quote is the most credible internal validation of the 2026 Eagles defensive ceiling. He is the All-Pro who plays both the run and the pass, the player who saw the Year 1 install and the Year 2 refinement, and the leader who now identifies himself, Davis, DeJean, and Mitchell as the new leadership council.
When that player says Fangio is taking things to the next level, the historical comp says he is right. Mike Macdonald's Year 2-3 jump in Baltimore produced the #1 NFL defense. Wink Martindale's Year 3 produced the same. Fangio in Year 3 of his Eagles install, with Greenard added, Woolen added, and Campbell entering Year 2, has more talent than either of those defenses had.
The 2026 Eagles defense will not be a question mark. It will be the floor that the rest of the team has to clear. If Baun is right (and the pattern says he is), the floor is championship-defense level.
Training camp opens late July. Watch what Fangio shows in the first padded practice. If the front-seven creativity Mosher described is on the install board on Day 1, Baun's quote was a tell.
