PHILADELPHIA - Eagles tackle Winston Justice was celebrating the four-year, $18.5 million contract he signed last Tuesday when defensive end Jason Babin sauntered toward Justice's locker.
"Congrats," Babin said. "Can you lend me five bucks?"
A few feet away, defensive tackle Antonio Dixon chuckled. End Chris Clemons paused at Dixon's stall and needled him about his lack of muscle tone. Farther down the row of lockers, cornerback Ramzee Robinson was kidding rookie safety Macho Harris about the huge sunglasses Harris was wearing for his eye infection.
Babin wasn't on the team when it reported to training camp in early August. Dixon didn't sign with the Eagles until he was cut by Washington at the end of the preseason. Robinson signed earlier this month. He was out of football after Detroit let him go in early September.
But despite their short tenures in town, they all feel as much a part of the Eagles as veterans such as cornerback Sheldon Brown and quarterback Donovan McNabb.
"It doesn't matter to me if I play one play or 50 plays," said Babin, who previously played for Houston, Seattle and Kansas City. "I'm having more fun playing here than I've ever had in the NFL."
The only person not having fun is whoever has the task of sewing the names on the backs of the Eagles' jerseys. Given the amount of turnover, he or she must be running out of thread.
The 53-player active roster includes eight players who were not Eagles when the club reported to training camp at Lehigh University in August.
At least five of them figure to play prominent roles on the defense against Washington today. Linebackers Jeremiah Trotter and Will Witherspoon are expected to start. Babin, Dixon and Robinson also should get plenty of playing time.
They are part of what has been a remarkable coaching performance by new defensive coordinator Sean McDermott. Despite the turnover, the Eagles have the No. 8 defense in the NFL. They are also among the top three in sacks (30) and takeaways (23).
"Our personnel has changed, but our identity is still the same," McDermott said. "We want to be known as an aggressive, nasty football team on defense. That's who we are, regardless of who plays what position.
"It's been a mix-and-match deal every week, and it's been that way for most of the season. But we'll just continue to use the personnel that we have at our disposal and try to win football games."
Of the newcomers, Babin has been here the longest. He arrived on Aug. 4, a few days after the Eagles reported to training camp. Cornerback Geoffrey Pope is the newest member. He got here last Tuesday, when the Eagles signed him off Cincinnati's practice squad.
No one traveled as far as Trotter, who signed on Sept. 29. When the Eagles called, he was sitting in his southern New Jersey home. He had been out of football for a year. Although he's only 32 years old, a series of knee injuries had seemingly stolen his quickness.
The Eagles took a chance and signed Trotter to provide depth behind Omar Gaither. He got off to a rough start and soon found himself on special teams, only to get another shot when more injuries hit the linebacking corps. Trotter started last Sunday against Chicago and played the entire second half of the Eagles' 24-20 victory.
"Man, it felt so good to get out there again and help the team," Trotter said. "I knew it was just a matter of time before I got my legs back. It's all about working hard and being ready when you're number's called."
McDermott has had to call more numbers than a Bingo manager. Middle linebacker Stewart Bradley, Gaither and cornerback Ellis Hobbs suffered season-ending injuries. Outside linebacker Akeem Jordan (hyperextended knee) will miss his third straight game Sunday. Cornerback Joselio Hanson is three games into a four-game suspension for violating the league's substance-abuse policy.
Sometimes, McDermott has made the calls without much notice. The Eagles worked a trade for Witherspoon on Oct. 20. Six days later, he started at middle linebacker and returned an interception for a touchdown in a 27-17 win over the Redskins. Robinson joined the team as a free agent on Nov. 11. On Nov. 15, he was playing defensive back in the Eagles' 23-21 loss at San Diego.
"Obviously, when you're missing your starting guys it hurts, but I'm proud of the way we've kept things together," safety Quintin Mikell said. "We're not firing on all cylinders because we've lost guys that are important to our schemes, but the other guys have stepped in and done a great job.
"You have to look at it as an opportunity to show what you can do and help the team get better, and they've done that. Nobody wants to be the guy that steps in and is the reason why we're not playing well."
Contact David Weinberg:
609-272-7186
Eagles additions since start of training camp
DE Jason Babin (Aug. 4)
DT Antonio Dixon (Sept. 6)
TE Alex Smith (Sept. 8)
LB Jeremiah Trotter (Sept. 29)
LB Will Witherspoon (Oct. 20)
RB P.J. Hill (Oct. 28)
CB Ramzee Robinson (Nov. 11)
CB Geoffrey Pope (Nov. 24)
