He Who Wears The Crown
LBs Coach Bobby King Credited For Dean, Baun Emergence
PHILADELPHIA – When the Eagles officially announced their coaching staff for the 2024 season in late February, there were several familiar names that stood out from their respective stops around the league.
But one of the coaches whose background wasn’t known much also happened to be presiding over the team’s most perpetually scrutinized position.
Bobby King, a 14-year veteran, had last served as the inside linebackers coach of the Tennessee Titans, where he spent two seasons.
Adding to the hiring intrigue is that there was little connecting King to the Eagles’ organization – apart from his overlapping with Sirianni when the two belonged to the same Chargers staff from 2014-2016.
King, back then, was an assistant linebackers coach.
Unless there’s regression or frequent miscues, coaches often get overlooked, especially ones on a 12-2 team with so many prominent storylines.
But it’s hard to ignore the stellar play of Eagles linebackers Zack Baun and Nakobe Dean, both widely viewed as wild cards coming into the season for different reasons.

GETTY IMAGES: Eagles LB Bobby King has helped nurture Nakobe Dean and Zack Baun into a dynamic tandem.
For Baun, much of the reservations about his long-term viability stemmed from his relative inexperience playing inside linebacker.
He hadn’t seen the field much during his first four seasons in the NFL, his highest snap total (301) coming in 2023.
But Baun, third on the defense in snaps and accounting for 95% of the total, has proven to be a quick study, quick to read and diagnose, instinctually flowing to the football and showcasing a high-level football IQ.
Baun, who leads the Eagles in tackles (134), has also flashed as a pass-rusher, where he’s picked up 3.5 sacks. One of the more remarkable stories of the 2024 season, Baun not only feels like a lock for his first Pro Bowl nod but All-Pro honors could also be on tap.
In Dean’s case, the Georgia product found himself at a crossroads heading into his third NFL season.
After being tossed the keys to defense last year in just his second season, the 2022 third-round pick sustained injuries to both feet, relegating him to injured reserve and limiting him to just five games.
He was commonly labeled as too small and too injury prone through the entirety of the offseason and he became emblematic of the team’s annual retooling of the linebacker position that typically yields underwhelming results.
But Dean, cerebral and brimming with natural leadership qualities, ultimately rounded into form following a turbulent first two weeks of training camp, wrangling a starting job away from veteran free-agent signing Devin White.
In many ways, it’s Dean’s physicality and tone-setting tendencies that exemplify the defense’s mentality – and personifies the gritty, no frills mentality of the city.
While most effective attacking downhill as a power rusher, Dean has also come into his own as a coverage linebacker, shaking off a rough training camp to make game-changing plays, such as his win-sealing interception in the waning moments against the Jaguars.
The chemistry and close-knit relationship between Baun and Dean is evident on and off the field, as the linebackers complement each other well.
Baun and Dean deserve much of the credit for their development, but so does King, for his proven coaching methods.
Without King, who prioritizes technicality and violence in terms of block destruction, it’s possible the acclimation and rise of Dean and Baun wouldn’t have been as seamless.
“Oh, man,” Dean said. “B.K. has done a lot.”
Specifically, Dean said King’s emphasis on technique is a good balance to the third-year pro’s focus on strategy.
“He’s almost, I don’t wanna say complete opposite – of course, he looks at the Xs and Os, too – but he’s more so of a technique guy,” Dean said. “He feels like if a linebacker can go out there and not even know the play call, and use technique and violence and make a play.
“So, he’s kind of harped on me and got me better from a fundamental and technique standpoint. And I’m very grateful for that, for sure.
Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni noted King’s gift for drilling the fundamentals of the position, fixating on the different subtleties and nuances.
Few would argue that the group is collectively playing faster, and with great attention to detail.
Very rarely, if ever, do Baun or Dean make the same mistake twice.
For the first time in years, the Eagles have a second level working in concert, swarming to the football, shedding blocks and consistently assignment sound.
The group plays with controlled violence and tenacity, a byproduct, they said, of King’s directives.
Earlier this year, rookie linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr. explained why he felt King is “a great linebackers coach.”
“Block destruction is a big part of something that they’re very passionate in this coaching style,” Trotter Jr. said. “Coming into the league, I feel like that really helped me out and really improved my game in that area.”
Both Baun and Dean entered the season with targets on their backs.
Rather than succumbing to the perpetuating narrative and failing to meet expectations, the duo has positioned itself for the success that’s come.
Once viewed as the league’s shoddiest linebacking unit entering the season, Baun and Dean have now rewritten the narrative on their way to becoming household names, with an assist from the faceless position coach whose name is rarely mentioned in headlines or stories.
“He’s done a great job with those guys, with Nakobe and Zack and even getting our backups ready if they have to be called upon to play,” defensive coordinator Vic Fangio said this week.
“He’s a good teacher. He emphasizes the right things. Very coachable in regards to learning a new system and the nuances that go with it. So, from day one he’s been great.”
– Andrew DiCecco (@AndrewDiCecco) is a Staff Reporter/Content Producer for InsideTheBirds.com.
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