Graham gladly passing on his pass-rushing wisdom

PHILADELPHIA >> If Brandon Graham teaches as effectively as he terrorizes quarterbacks, the Eagles could rank among the NFL leaders in takeaways this season.

The veteran defensive end’s pet project is first-round defensive end Derek Barnett, a fascinating blend of talent and technique.

“When I’m out there with a young guy like DB, I try to help him as much as I can because I know as a rookie, for me, I had Trent Cole,” Graham said. “And Trent Cole made it kind of easy for me and made me a lot better. I’m just trying to pass it on. And I feel like a lot of the guys are doing that with the new guys that are here.”

Cole was a solid pass rusher who also set the edge for some pretty good Eagles defenses, including the one that reached the 2008 NFC title game.

Graham gave the Eagles all of that and more in 2016, as he led the league with 78 combined sacks, hurries and quarterback knockdowns.

Not coincidentally the Eagles registered 26 takeaways, 10th in the league. Graham led the Birds with two forced fumbles and his 51/2 sacks was second on the squad. The production earned him second-team All-Pro honors.

Graham wasn’t kidding during an availability a month ago when he publicly rated Barnett his top pass rusher in the draft.

Barnett, who broke the late Reggie White’s sacks records at Tennessee, has done nothing to change Graham’s mind since joining the Birds.

“He’s definitely going to help,” Graham said. “I see his skills set. He can definitely bend. He can definitely get around those (offensive) tackles. Now it’s all about just working on his technique and getting him to do exactly what the coaches want him to do so that when the game comes, he can feel comfortable and he can kind of interpret what they’ve been teaching on top of what he already knows.”

Barnett, like Graham, gets almost parallel to the ground while bending his knees in pass rush approach. The rookie’s motion is smooth yet forceful.

Barnett (6-3, 259) is a little longer than Graham (6-2, 265), both in the torso and the arms, and that seems to help him get to the edge. You never can have enough players bringing the heat from the edge.

“We always need help on the line,” Graham said. “We’ve got a good rotation going. We always like to play eight to nine guys in a game.”

The Eagles need a big season out of Graham while he develops Barnett. A couple of weeks ago there was a report Graham would avoid OTAs unless his contract was sweetened.

Instead the 2010 first-round pick out of Michigan has suited up and shown up for the voluntary camp. And it’s not an indictment of his bud, defensive tackle Fletcher Cox, who isn’t at OTAs.

“I’m always happy to be here,” Graham said. “At the end of the day I’m a leader and I’m trying to lead this team to get a ring.”