Vinny Curry remains confident in play despite low sack total

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Along with a massive contract comes massive expectations.

Fans expected a huge year from Vinny Curry. His coaches expected a huge year. Definitely Curry expected a huge year as well.

Eleven games later, it just hasn’t happened for Curry, the fifth-year defensive end from Marshall.

Curry has just 1½ sacks this year and no full sacks since Week 4 in Detroit.

Since recording nine sacks in his breakthrough 2014 season, Curry has just five sacks in 27 games in 2015 and 2016.

He says he’s not frustrated, but it’s been a rough stretch for the Central Jersey native, who grew up an Eagles fan and signed a five-year, $47.25 million contract this offseason that included a $10 million signing bonus and $23 million in guaranteed components.

With an average of $9.45 million per year, Curry is the 10th-highest-paid defensive end in the NFL.

That contract has landed a big, giant bullseye on Curry’s back, and he knows it.

He also believes the effort is there. Just not the results.

“End of the day, that bullseye, anybody in their right mind that understands football will understand the opportunities I’m receiving, I’m making the best of them,” Curry said at his locker after practice on Thursday.

“I still ain’t complaining. I ain’t jumping up saying [I’m not playing enough], you know? It is what it is. They can say what they want, I know I’m out there busting my ass for the team.”

Curry, a second-round draft pick in 2012, didn’t play as a rookie playing under Juan Castillo and Todd Bowles, recorded four sacks in 2013 in Year 1 under Bill Davis, then had his breakout 2014 season. He had just 3½ sacks last year, as his playing time dwindled.

He was expected to play more this year, but his snaps per game have actually dropped from 26.8 per game last year to 25.1 this year. Because the defense is playing far fewer snaps, that reflects an increase in playing time percentage but it’s still just 44 percent of the defensive snaps after 35 percent last year.

“Been like this since I’ve been in the NFL,” said Curry, whose 18 career sacks are most in NFL history by a player who's never started a game.

“I mean, you would think it would be more frustrating by now because you would think by this point I would be not coming off the bench, you know? 

“But it’s going to be what it’s going to be. They’ve got a rotation and all I can do is when I’m out there, do what I’m coached to do and do it to the best of my ability. …

“Opportunities that I’m getting, I’m going out there and just trying to do my job. Sometimes you get a quick release. I’m always around the facility, just not getting home, you know?”

Curry does have four tackles for loss and nine hurries. But he’s getting paid to sack the quarterback, and other than one sack of Matt Stafford and half a sack he shared with Marcus Smith in Seattle, it hasn’t happened.

Curry said when he watches film of himself, he likes what he sees. 

“Am I collapsing the pocket? Am I getting pressure? I feel like I’m getting pressure,” he said. “I’ve gotten a lot of pressures on the season, just not going with the sacks. Getting tackles. My amount of tackles with other guys at the same position are right there. But it is what it is, you know?”

This has been a team-wide problem.

The Eagles have just six sacks in the last five games after recording 20 in the first five. Of those six sacks, 2½ have come courtesy of Destiny Vaeao and Smith.  So the main pass rushers — Connor Barwin, Fletcher Cox, Brandon Graham and Curry — have just 3½ sacks since Week 7 (see story).

Graham had three sacks the first three weeks and has two the last eight. Cox had four the first four weeks and has none since. Barwin had three the first seven weeks, one the last four.

 “[Quarterbacks] are just getting rid of the ball and max protecting,” Curry said. “They know what type of scheme we’re running and they’re just trying to out-scheme us on certain things. 

“We just have to keep grinding. We can’t get frustrated. We just got to stick together.”

Personally, Curry is looking at these last five weeks as a chance to make up for the first 11 games.

The Eagles, 5-6, and on the outer fringes of the NFC playoff hunt, look to end a five-game road losing streak Sunday in Cincinnati against the 3-7-1 Bengals.

Curry said he expects to finish the year strong.

“Absolutely,” he said. “I’ll bet on myself any day. I’m going to keep going. 

“You look at certain people in the league up to a couple weeks ago only had one sack and now they sitting at five. That’s how it is. When they come, they come.”

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