Eagles snap counts: Za'Darius Smith has an impressive Eagles debut
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — It didn’t take Za’Darius Smith very long to get up to speed.
The 33-year-old edge rusher signed with the Eagles the day after their season opener and played 20 snaps in their Week 2 win over the Chiefs on Sunday afternoon in Arrowhead.
Smith played well in the 20-17 win.
In his 20 snaps, Smith had 4 tackles, half a sack and a tackle for loss. He provided some juice to Vic Fangio’s defense and is already ahead of Josh Uche as the Eagles’ third edge rusher.
“He’s really heavy handed, can win with power, can win with speed quick,” head coach Nick Sirianni said on Monday. “It’s been fun being around him for a week. Looking forward to him continuing to develop his role on this football team. Time will still tell, I think.”
Here’s how those snaps on the edge played out:
Nolan Smith: 44 snaps (73%)
Jalyx Hunt: 34 snaps (57%)
Za’Darius Smith: 20 snaps (33%)
Josh Uche: 16 snaps (27%)
Patrick Johnson: 6 snaps (10%)
Both Azeez Ojulari and Ogbo Okoronkwo were healthy scratches in Kansas City.
Other defensive notes
• Cooper DeJean, Quinyon Mitchell, Reed Blankenship and Zack Baun played all 60 defensive snaps against the Chiefs. Jihaad Campbell was close with 58 of 60 snaps.
• The Eagles continued to play DeJean at outside cornerback in the base package but Adoree’ Jackson was still the next corner up. He played 43 snaps (72%) and missed a few while he was getting his hand taped. Jakorian Bennett filled in for five snaps.
• Jalen Carter made his 2025 debut after his early ejection in Week 1. He played 48 snaps (80%) despite an injury to his right arm. Carter led the way for defensive tackles and was followed by Moro Ojomo (42 snaps – 70%), Jordan Davis (32 snaps – 53%) and Byron Young (10 snaps – 17%). Rookie Ty Robinson was active but saw just four snaps on special teams.
Offensive notes
• The Eagles played the exact same number of offensive and defensive snaps in this game. Jalen Hurts and his entire starting offensive line played all 60. That includes Landon Dickerson, who has been dealing with a back injury that forced him out of Week 1 early.
• Without Dallas Goedert (knee), Grant Calcaterra was the top tight end. He played 53 snaps (88%), while Kylen Granson played 34 (57%) and Cameron Latu played 6 (10%). Latu looked good in limited action as a fullback in his first NFL game.
• At receiver, A.J. Brown played 58 snaps (97%) and DeVonta Smith played 45 (75%). Brown led the team in targets with 8 but had just 5 catches for 27 yards. Smith had 4 for 53, including a huge 28-yarder on a key 3rd-and-10. Jahan Dotson (22 snaps – 37%), Darius Cooper (12 snaps – 20%) and John Metchie III (7 snaps – 12%) also saw the field.
• Saquon Barkley played 50 of 60 snaps (83%) and finished the game with 22 rushing attempts for 88 yards and a touchdown. Without Will Shipley (oblique), A.J. Dillon played 10 snaps and had 3 carries for 19 yards. Tank Bigsby was active but didn’t play on offense.
• DeJean got two more offensive snaps on Sunday. He’s the deep guy in victory formation. He now has 5 offensive snaps on the season. It’s a good thing to see DeJean get offensive snaps.
Eagles snap counts: Za'Darius Smith has an impressive Eagles debut
