In this free-agent era of high-volume personnel movement in the NFL, young players are unavoidably forced into the spotlight, elevated into the starting lineup because of a teammate's departure. This year is no different.

Second-year pro Gary Baxter, who appeared in just six games with the Baltimore Ravens as a rookie in 2001, will move from free safety to cornerback to replace the departed Duane Starks. Willie Whitehead, never more than a situational pass-rusher for New Orleans, gets first shot at the defensive end vacancy created when Joe Johnson exited to Green Bay. Denver weakside linebacker Ian Gold, a "nickel" player and special-teams standout his first two seasons, replaces the discarded Bill Romanowski.

Every franchise has at least one example of a player who is being counted on to step into a breach. Few positions, though, have experienced more wholesale turnover this spring than the middle linebacker spot. And because of the unique circumstances, none of the new starters at middle linebacker will experience the pressure that figures to be visited upon Barry Gardner, a Philadelphia Eagles fourth-year veteran.

	Movement in the middle
	Barry Gardner of Philadelphia isn't the only new starting middle linebacker. Ten other teams are switching at the position, most the result of free-agency defections. Here's a look at those 10:
	Team	2002	2001
	Buf.	London Fletcher	Sam Cowart
	Cle.	Earl Holmes	Wali Rainer
	Jac.	Wali Rainer	Hardy Nickerson
	Car.	Dan Morgan	Lester Towns
	Det.	Chris Claiborne	Stephen Boyd
	G.B.	Hardy Nickerson	Bernardo Harris
	Min.	Henri Crockett	Kailee Wong
	Stl.	Jamie Duncan	London Fletcher
	T.B.	Shelton Quarles	Jamie Duncan
	Was.	Jeremiah Trotter	Kevin Mitchell

A second-round selection in the 1999 draft, Gardner steps into the huge footprints left behind by Jeremiah Trotter. Further exacerbating the pressure is that the Eagles, who lost the 2001 NFC championship game at St. Louis by a mere five points, should again be a viable Super Bowl contender.

And that means Gardner, who is one of 11 new starting middle linebackers for franchises in the 2002 campaign, will be the equivalent of a football virus under a high-resolution microscope: probed, poked, dissected. His every move will be documented and, given the city in which he plays, inevitably compared to Trotter.

The understudy a year ago, Gardner will be overanalyzed in 2002. He knows it.

"If people want to make me the marked man, well, that's how it is, I guess," Gardner said. "There's not a lot I can do about it. People have to realize that 'Trot' played the game his way and I just have to be myself, (because) I'm not him. What I would hope is that I'm judged simply on my performance and not on how people think he would be playing if he was still here."

Such comparisons, unfortunately, are inevitable.

The Eagles' defense, ranked No. 7 under coordinator Jim Johnson in 2001, could have as many as five new starters this year as Philadelphia seeks to become the first NFC East club to successfully defend its title since 1990. But weakside linebacker Shawn Barber, strong safety Blaine Bishop and defensive left end Derrick Burgess haven't come under the level of scrutiny that has accompanied Gardner's elevation to the first unit. The phone lines on radio talk shows in the city aren't burning up with discussion about how Bishop might be an upgrade over Damon Moore or if Barber, coming off knee surgery, can be as steady as the departed Mike Caldwell.

Gardner isn't just the new guy in the middle. Instead he is a player with a bull's-eye on his chest, a young defender caught up in a potential maelstrom. But at least he has handled the pressure remarkably well to this point.

In fact, give Gardner an "A" for aplomb, particularly given his demeanor during the club's unsuccessful pursuit of free agent middle linebacker Hardy Nickerson earlier this month. In keeping with head coach Andy Reid's penchant for competition at every position (save quarterback, of course, where Donovan McNabb is unchallenged), Eagles officials courted the 15-year veteran and even made a contract proposal.

	“	People have to realize that 'Trot' played the game his way and I just have to be myself, (because) I'm not him. What I would hope is that I'm judged simply on my performance and not on how people think he would be playing if he was still here. ”
		— Barry Gardner on replacing Jeremiah Trotter

There was some disappointment when Nickerson opted to sign with Green Bay -- "Sure we wanted him here," acknowledged Johnson, one of the game's best, if underappreciated, defensive coordinators -- but also a notable absence of hand-wringing. On the other hand, an Eagles management team that publicly pronounced its confidence in Gardner was seen in some quarters as privately dubious about his ability to handle the starting job.

It is notable that, unlike the Packers, the Eagles never publicly promised Nickerson the top job. Sources close to Nickerson, though, insist there were broad suggestions that, if he signed with Philadelphia, he would be in the lineup opening day.

None of that fazed Gardner. Nor does the glare of the spotlight about to be turned in his direction, beginning with the first day of training camp, bother him.

There are, Johnson has stated, some things Gardner does better than Trotter, perhaps versus the run. Unlike his predecessor, Gardner won't be a three-down player, and Barber or strongside starter Carlos Emmons probably will move to the "nickel" linebacker spot on passing downs. There were occasions in 2001, the people with selective memories seem to forget, when the Eagles couldn't stop the run even with Trotter in the lineup.

But the manner in which Trotter exited the team, with Eagles officials rescinding the "franchise" designation and allowing him to become a free agent, heightens the chore that lies ahead for Gardner. So does the fact Trotter eventually signed with Washington, an NFC East rival, and will face the Eagles twice annually.

A Northwestern graduate and former college walk-on who played his way into a football scholarship, Gardner is too smart to get involved in whatever political designs led to the exit of Trotter. For him, opportunity isn't just banging on the door, it's trying to kick the sucker down.

Only two years ago, Gardner started 13 games at weakside linebacker, and he posted 95 tackles. Last season, as the backup to Trotter, he had zero starts but readied himself for the unlikely possibility the starting job would open up. When it did, it didn't take long for Gardner to ratchet up his preparations another notch.

"I know what's expected of me from the fans, my teammates, the coaches," Gardner said. "But, trust me, no one expects more from me than me."

Len Pasquarelli is a senior writer for ESPN.com.