Philadelphia Eagles: Could Ronald Darby be on the trade block?

After trading for Ronald Darby one season ago, could the Philadelphia Eagles’ cornerback once again be on the move before his contract year?

The Philadelphia Eagles have a bit of a cornerback conundrum on their hands.

After fielding one of the league’s worst secondaries year-in and year-out for the last half-decade, the team is now almost spoiled with talent at the cornerback position, maybe to a fault.

Between drafting a pair of defenders, Sidney Jones and Rasul Douglas on the second day of the 2017 NFL Draft, the unlikely resurgence of unwanted free agent Patrick Robinson and the emergence of second year, seventh-round pick Jalen Mills as a legitimate number one corner, the team has a well of options for their starting trio next season, but of the position group, no player’s future is more up in the air than 2017 acquisition Ronald Darby.

Darby, a second-round pick from Florida State, initially came to the team as a potential savior for their secondary, but after the former Bill suffered a leg injury in the team’s Week 1 contest against the Washington Redskins, the rest of Cory Undlin‘s secondary had to step up in his stead, and did so remarkably well.

While Jones was still unavailable to play after rupturing his Achilles tendon at Washington‘s Pro Day, Douglas stepped up and became an intriguing option at the right corner position, with Robinson manning the slot. Though Darby did eventually return, just in time for the Eagles trip to face off against the Cowboys at Jerry’s World, his play was mostly up and down as the third year corner regained his legs in coverage.

Now fully healthy, Darby could once again be an intriguing option for Jim Schwartz defense in 2018, especially if the team allows Robinson walk in free agency. Though he isn’t the biggest corner in the league, the 5-foot-11 defender ran a lightning fast 4.38 40 yard dash at the 2015 NFL Combine and has the speed, and aggressiveness to take on virtually any opposing receiver one-on-one down the field. While he may struggle against big-bodied receivers like Mike Evans, A.J. Green or Julio Jones for an entire game, having a corner with inside-out speed and toughness is an absolute boon for a team with postseason aspirations.

(Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

But should the Philadelphia Eagles trade Darby?

So if Ronald Darby is such a great player, why would the team trade him?

Though the Eagles are obviously a better team with Darby in their secondary, his inclusion on the team may be superfluous with the team’s current cap situation.

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The Eagles are currently $9 million over the cap going into the 2018 NFL season, and that’s before they resign any of their upcoming free agents, like Trey Burton, Nigel Bradham, and Robinson, all essential parts of their 2017 Super Bowl run. While moving on from Darby and his $1 million contract would hardly alleviate that pressure, his services will be a whole lot more expensive the following season.

Currently set to enter the final year of his rookie contract, Darby will likely be looking for a very lucrative contract next offseason, one in the ballpark of the deal his former teammate Stephon Gilmore signed with the Patriots last offseason, 5-years $65 million.

Though Darby hasn’t established himself as a true number one corner in the same way that Gilmore had before him, it would simply be unrealistic to assume that he would take a hometown discount after only one season in South Philly. With even number two corners receiving inflated contracts last offseason, like Logan Ryan‘s 3-year, $30 million deal with the Titans, or A.J. Bouye‘s 5-year, $67.5 million contract with the Jaguars, Darby is going to want to get paid, and with so many other, talented corners waiting in the wings, that may be hard to accommodate.

While Darby is considered a better player, and prospect than Robinson, the eight-year vet absolutely shined in the slot in 2017, putting together arguably his best season as a pro. Though the team could simply let him go, and shift a player like Jones or Darby into the slot, it started to seem less and less likely that the team would let Robinson walk after he kept making play after play in the slot. I mean his 50-yard pick-six against the Vikings alone practically made him a folk hero in the City of Brotherly Love.

Now I could be wrong, but doesn’t it make more sense for the Eagles to re-sign Robinson to a 3-year, $13.5 million deal, the same contract he signed in Indianapolis a season earlier, and save some money to pay an impending free agent like Jay Ajayi, instead of committing over $10 million a season to Darby and allow either Douglas or Jones rot on the bench?

Even in a contract season, Darby is still an incredibly valuable commodity in the league, and could likely fetch the Eagles a Day 2 draft selection for his services, essentially recouping the team’s initial investment.

While letting a player like Darby go only one season after he was acquired could be a tough pill to swallow for some fans, especially one who picked up a number 35, I mean number 41 jersey, it would be even tougher to watch Darby walk in the following free agency, and receive no compensation for his services.

When the Eagles drafted Jones in the second round of the 2017 NFL Draft it was to start, and while adding Darby to the team obviously helped to fill his shoes during his redshirt season, the emergence of Mills as a true number one corner, when coupled with the upside of Douglas makes Darby a luxury, not an essential.

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If Week 17 was any indication, Jones looks like a star and could quickly establish himself as an absolute staple of Schwartz’s stout Philly defense alongside Mills and Robinson, but if the Eagles want to optimize the former Huskie’s potential, they’ll need to give him a chance to start. While moving on from Darby after only one season wouldn’t be an ideal situation, it could alleviate the team’s logjam at cornerback, and give both players a chance to find a long-term starting role moving forward, with any draft compensation being icing on the cake.

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