The Eagles unleashed their latest tweak to the linebacker corps last Sunday when Akeem Jordan played middle linebacker for the first time in his NFL career. After missing four games with a knee injury, Jordan played about 20 snaps according to defensive coordinator Sean McDermott and posted two tackles.

"You're either getting better or you're getting worse," Jordan said. "Hopefully, I'm getting better for the team. I have to do it for my boys."

McDermott said that the Eagles are going to expect more from Jordan now that he has some game experience at the position.

"We expect him to be a little bit better this week physically, coming off of the injury and then playing that middle position and moving around like he's doing, having him build up a little bit of experience at the same time," McDermott said.

That doesn't mean Jeremiah Trotter, who was in for about 40 plays according to McDermott, will be out of the lineup.

"Jeremiah is very much incorporated. I thought he played a pretty good football game the other night," McDermott said. "To think that Jeremiah would be able to come in here and play forty plays, I think most of the people in this room would have told you that that was a fantasy dream a year ago, but he's done a great job."

Jordan started at weakside linebacker for the first eight games of the season. McDermott explained the decision not to put Jordan back on the weak side.

"We want the best three on the field. You hate to keep moving players around from a continuity standpoint and consistency standpoint," McDermott said. "Will Witherspoon being here now and having moved when Akeem went down to the WILL linebacker position, we just hate to keep moving guys around, (we're) trying to get them in a position where they're comfortable. The injuries haven't allowed for as much of that as we would've liked up to this point."

-- Posted by Chris McPherson, 11:15 p.m., December 17