Philadelphia Eagles: Get to know new safety Deiondre’ Hall

Trade Alert! The Philadelphia Eagles have acquired Deiondre’ Hall from the Chicago Bears for a conditional pick. Let’s get to know the team’s newest safety.

Just when we thought the Philadelphia Eagles were done making moves, the team claps back with a surprising trade to bolster a position of need.

For the price of a future conditional seventh-round pick, Howie Roseman has snagged an intriguing safety prospect without having to fight it out on the waiver wire.

But who is Deiondre’ Hall, and why did the Eagles make a move to bring him to town? Let’s get to know the newest member of the Eagles and find his fit on the roster moving forward.

Plug and Play Panther

After falling under the radar during the college recruiting process, and failing to even receive a grade from ESPN’s recruiting service, Hall signed on to play for Mark Farley at Northern Iowa University.

Logging 46 starts over four seasons on campus, Hall was an absolute force for the Panthers, recording 242 tackles, three sacks, 15 pass breakups, 13 interceptions, and four defensive touchdowns over 51 games.

Obviously, those stats are pretty incredible. And the best part? Hall played all over the defense.

Described by Farley as a player who could “play any position on defense because of his good attitude, football intelligence, and tenacious nature“, Hall played safety, cornerback, and even linebacker over his tenure in Cedar Falls. Now say what you will about how he did all of this while playing in the Missouri Valley Conference, but it clearly turned some scouts’ heads, as Hall was invited to take part in the 2016 Reeses’ Senior Bowl game.

Day 3 Dynamo

After impressing at the Senior Bowl, Hall was invited to take part the NFL Draft Combine and had one of the more perplexing showings of any player in Indianapolis.

Though he recorded the best broad jump of any player in the draft at 127 inches, Hall ran a very slow 4.68 40 yard dash that all but ended any speculation that he could continue to play outside cornerback in the NFL.

But still, Hall’s production couldn’t be ignored, and a few months later, Hall was selected 127th overall in the 2016 NFL Draft by the Chicago Bears.

And who was in the Eagles’ front office at the time? None other than current Eagles VP of Player Personel Joe Douglas.

From there, Hall would go on to appear in 10 games for the Bears over two seasons, eight games as a rookie and two games as a sophomore after losing much of the regular season to a preseason hamstring that landed him on IR.

With 2018 looking as a make-or-break summer for the third year DB, it quickly became evident that he was firmly behind Adrian Amos, Eddie Jackson, and even fellow 2016 draft pick Deon Bush on the Bears’ depth chart, Hall was most likely headed for the waiver wire before a last-minute trade shipped the former Panther to the City of Brotherly Love.

Hall’s fit in Philly

So, with Hall now a member of the Philadelphia Eagles, what can we expect from the third year safety?

Well, nothing right away.

On August 20th, Hall was officially suspended for one game for violating the league’s substance abuse policy, a suspension that will follow him to Philly. So since suspended players don’t technically count against the 53-man roster, he will have to wait until after the Eagles’ Week 1 game against the Atlanta Falcons to officially join the team.

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While the move to bring him into the fold does come as a bit of a surprise, as Philly had opted to keep second-year Shepherd safety Tre Sullivan on the final 53-man roster, it is a move that makes some sense.

With Chris Maragos set to start the season out on the physically-unable-to-perform list (PUP), the Eagles do conceivably have an extra spot at safety available for at least the first games of the season.

Though Hall obviously didn’t live up to expectations in Chicago, it’s hard to knock a player who spent most of his second season on injured reserve. While he may not have become a starter for the Bears, he still possesses the ball skills, size and instincts be a versatile player on any defensive scheme.

Douglas likely wouldn’t have okayed this trade if Hall couldn’t play.

So while it’s unclear why exactly the Eagles decided to make a move for Hall, and what role he will have in 2018, be that a role player, special teamer, or weekly DNP, the trade itself does have merit.

With Corey Graham set to retire at season’s end, and Maragos looking more and more like a 2019 cap casualty after restructuring his contract, the Eagles could use a young safety to back up incumbent starters Malcolm Jenkins and Rodney McLeod for the foreseeable future. For the low price of a conditional seventh-round pick, the Philadelphia Eagles now have two.