Nothing has really changed.
The same kid who would toil under the summer sun and outwork the other kids still surfaces. The same kid who would break down film with his famous dad when he was 10 is still there. The glaring difference is that Jeremiah Trotter Jr. is a lot larger, much stronger and faster, and he’s the one these days picking up his Eagles Hall of Fame father, Jeremiah Trotter Sr., rather than the other way around.
Trotter Jr., the Eagles’ 2024 fifth-round out of Clemson by way of St. Joe’s Prep, had an impressive rookie season, making 25 tackles, nine solo, playing in all 17 regular-season games, starting one, and getting a Super Bowl his rookie season as a major special teams contributor. He is already ahead of his dad, who played in eight games and made three tackles his rookie season in 1998.
What they may have in common, however, is their second season in the NFL. Trotter Sr. got his chance under the Eagles’ new head coach in 1999, Andy Reid, who gave Trotter Sr. the starting role at middle linebacker in 1999, on his way to making four Pro Bowl teams and being first-team All-Pro (2000). The way the Eagles currently look, it appears as if Trotter Jr. is going to get his chance in his second year to start.
Nakobe Dean suffered a debilitating torn patellar tendon in his left knee during the Eagles’ 22-10 Wild Card playoff victory over the Green Bay Packers on January 12, 2025. Dean was hurt in the second quarter tackling Packers’ tight end Tucker Kraft and was carted off the field. Dean had his best—and healthiest—season as a pro, making 128 tackles in the regular season, with three sacks, and six quarterback hits. He underwent surgery in January. Complete tears typically require surgery and can take up to six to 12 months or longer for a full recovery.
Dean, 24, started a career-best 15 games last season. As a precaution, the Eagles drafted Alabama linebacker Jihaad Campbell with the 31st overall pick, moving up one place with Kansas City to get him. Campbell may have dipped in the draft due to a torn labrum injury, so currently, the starting MIKE linebacker is Trotter Jr., 22, with either him or likely Eagles All-Pro linebacker Zack Baun wearing the “green dot” helmet, calling the Eagles’ defensive plays.
Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio loves Trotter Jr., as do the Eagles assistant coaches Bobby King, Ronell Williams and Jeremiah Washburn. They like Trotter Jr.’s work ethic, his diligence to detail, and the fact that he asks questions and is a student of the game.
“I’m going into the season with the attitude that anything the team needs me to do, I’m ready to do it,” Trotter Jr. told Bleeding Green Nation. “I feel good. I’m walking around at 225, 230 pounds, but I feel a lot stronger and at the same weight that I was last year. I watched film every day this offseason, going over game film, learning the defense even more. Having a year in the system definitely helped. I know what Vic likes, the way Vic wants his defense to look like. I can just play this year.
“Considering the situation that we’re in right now, with injuries and younger players, I could be the guy who calls the defense. In all due respect to Nakobe, and the way the NFL is run, if a guy goes down, someone needs to step up and perform. If I’m that guy, I have to be the best I can be to fill that role. I want more responsibility this year and I’m ready for it. I have a year in the system and know how it looks. I know what I am doing and know where I need to be.”
Trotter Jr. feels a greater comfort zone within the defense.
“After the bye week (last season, when the Eagles were sitting at 2-2), I began to play fast, play more freely and not think so much, just go and react,” he said. “We all did. This is a defense that makes offenses work, and I feel like it is a defense that can frustrate offenses. Vic is a great defensive mind, and puts us as players in positions where we even wonder how Vic made the perfect call. He sees things no one else sees. It comes from years of experience and being able to see things before they happen. This is a linebacker-friendly defense. You still have to play on instincts and how you fit with each call. Vic allows us to play fast.”
“Right now, I’m at the MIKE. I concern myself with what I need to do. I have to know offensive schemes and we all need to know Vic’s defense. I would watch an hour, two hours of film a day, picking everything up as we get closer to training camp. I ask of ton questions because I want to know. That’s not going to change. I’m really excited for this season. This could mean a big opportunity for me.”
“When I get the Super Bowl ring, I may wear it once and frame it somewhere in my house. There is work ahead of me. I want to win another Super Bowl. This whole team does. We’re still chasing something.”
And he has another big dream ahead that he may start whispering into Eagles general manager Howie Roseman’s about: Watching No. 40 in Missouri black and gold—Josiah Trotter—entering his red-shirt sophomore season.
“I’m sure Howie knows about him,” Jeremiah Jr. said about his younger brother. “Right now, just like me, he’s trying to be the best player he can be. It would be pretty crazy though, the two of us together again like we were at (St. Joe’s) Prep. I would definitely love to play next to him again, if God has that in his plans. The biggest difference in our house now is Josiah is the tallest.”
