Zack Baun continues to surprise everyone in the NFL — except the Eagles

Zack Baun continues to surprise everyone in the NFL — except the Eagles originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

ARLINGTON, Texas — After yet another incredible performance, it’s fair to say Zack Baun has been one of the biggest surprises of the 2024 NFL season.

It seems like everyone is at least a bit surprised to see how well Baun is playing this season.

Except Baun.

“No, I don’t think so,” Baun said after Sunday’s 34-6 win over the Cowboys. “I think through my time in New Orleans, of course people say I was an on-ball linebacker, but when I was in New Orleans, I was putting in the time, putting in just the same amount of work as the starters were.

“Just to prepare for a moment like this, my opportunity. And all I had to do was take advantage and just let it fly.”

In Sunday’s blowout win, Baun again made the most of his opportunity, filling up the stat sheet with 8 combined tackles, 2 forced fumbles, 1 tackle for loss and 1 fumble recovery. Just as he has been every week this season, Baun was all over the field.

Not bad for a guy the Eagles signed to a modest one-year deal in free agency.

At the time, at least from the outside, it seemed unlikely that Baun would crack the Eagles’ starting lineup as an off-ball linebacker. But defensive coordinator Vic Fangio saw something in Baun, put him there during OTAs and Baun hasn’t left since.

Fangio has coached linebackers for a long time in the NFL and trusted his eyes with his evaluation. It looks like he nailed it. And it has meant a lot to Baun to have the veteran defensive coordinator’s support.

“He had full trust in me and my abilities,” Baun said. “I think that really helped me in my transition as well. Everybody wants to be wanted, and everyone wants for someone to have a vision for them and a plan, and he definitely had that and it feels really good.”

Baun’s first forced fumble on Sunday came late in the second quarter with the Cowboys just 6 yards from the end zone. He popped the ball out of Ezekiel Elliott’s hands and into the back of the end zone, where Cooper DeJean recovered it for a touchback.

In the third quarter, Baun jumped on a strip-sack from Bryce Huff to set up another field goal for the Birds.

And then, for good measure, Baun popped the ball out of the hands of tight end Jake Ferguson early in the fourth quarter, which basically ended the game and allowed the Eagles to pull Jalen Hurts and their starters with nearly an entire quarter to go.

“Zack’s a great athlete,” head coach Nick Sirianni said. “He’s tough. You see him in the open field making tackles. You see him sticking his face in there in tight quarters. You see him being able to rush. He’s on a streak right now of taking the football away and the ball being on his mind.

“I just think he’s a really good football player. The best compliment I can give a guy is he’s a really good football player. That happens when you’re tough, you’re physical, detailed and he’s playing really fundamentally sound and just getting better every time he steps out in the field.”

Baun and Nakobe Dean have formed a really strong duo of linebackers for a team that hasn’t really had that in a lot of years. While Dean has been playing well, Baun has been playing at a Pro Bowl level this season.

The linebackers have started to collect their takeaway balls in the position room and are planning on buying a case to display them all. They might want to go big.

Dean said that the whole defense is competitive about takeaways — the Eagles had five as a team on Sunday — and that includes a friendly competition between him and Baun.

“He’s whooping my a— right now,” Dean said with a smile. “I gotta get right.”

But there’s no shame in being behind Baun in any category right now. That’s how well he’s playing.

During his four years with the Saints, Baun never became a full-time starter. Many viewed him this offseason as a situational on-ball linebacker. But Eagles safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson was teammates with Baun in New Orleans and claims he isn’t surprised by the success either.

“We’re finally getting our opportunity to make our mark on the league,” Gardner-Johnson said. “So I think he’s doing a hell of a job.”

Baun said that during his years in New Orleans, he just tried to trust the process. Talking with his agent and his wife helped a lot too.

When asked what has allowed him to blossom the way he has in Philly, Baun brought up how he transferred high schools and began to feel more comfortable. He’s feeling that way at the NovaCare Complex and in the Eagles’ locker room these days.

“They embrace me so much, the coaches, the players, the cafeteria staff – everyone just accepted me like a big family,” Baun said. “The people in the building made it really easy for me to transition here.”

Baun leads the team with 87 total tackles to go along with 2 sacks, 3 forced fumbles, an interception and a fumble recovery.

It’s time for Howie Roseman to figure out how to keep this guy.

Because through the first 10 weeks of the season, Baun has probably earned some money with that next contract. But after Sunday’s win over the Cowboys, he claimed that’s not on his mind right now.

“No, no. It’s one game at a time,” Baun said. “I’m just trying to get better. The linebacker room is trying to get better. This defense is trying to get better, and I’m glad it’s showing up.”

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Tags: NFL