Philadelphia Eagles: Please reunite Rasul Douglas and Darius Slay

As things presently stand, the Philadelphia Eagles‘ cornerbacks room isn’t too dissimilar from the unit they trotted out in 2020.

Sure, technically both Cre’Von LeBlanc and Nickell Robey-Coleman are still free agents and could sign elsewhere if they feel so inclined, but neither player really did enough to secure a long-term starting spot in the slot with the team moving forward, as indicated by their lack of tangible interest on the open market. Factor in the generally held belief that Avonte Maddox could shift inside to play his natural slot position in a similar vein to Kenny Moore in Indianapolis, and there’s a very good chance neither player is back in 2021, as neither has a connection to the new coaching staff.

But even if Maddox is better suited to deploy from the slot and should have every opportunity to do so in this his forthcoming contract year, that leaves the Eagles with a pretty gaping hole on the outside across from Darius Slay with only Craig James, Michael Jacquett, and Kevon Seymour under contract right now to fill that role.

Could the Eagles address outside cornerback with an early pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, maybe with a premium player like Jaycee Horn, Caleb Fairley, or even Asante Samuel Jr a little further down? Sure, but that’s a risky proposition even for a team in the middle of a rebuild. No, if the Eagles are smart, they’ll surely add at least one more player to their cornerbacks room if for no other reason than to serve as a short-term stopgap, and you know what? I have the perfect player in mind: Rasul Douglas.

It’s time for the Philadelphia Eagles to bring Rasul Douglas home.

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The Philadelphia Eagles’ decision to release both Rasul Douglas and Sidney Jones heading into the 2020 NFL Draft will always go down as one of the more head-scratching decisions in a season filled to the brim with head-scratching decisions.

Now granted, neither Douglas nor Jones was expected to start for the Eagles in the final year of their respective rookie contracts, and allowing the duo to get a head start going into the post-deadline/pre-Week 1 slapdash search for free teams likely felt like a “thank you for your service” gesture from Howie Roseman and company.

If that’s what he was going for, I can’t fault the GM for trying to be nice, but riddle me this, why the heck did he think rolling into Week 1 with a brand new cornerback, a first time outside cornerback, two slot specialists, and a special teams ace with only 68 defensive snaps to his name in an Eagles jersey was a good idea?

Yeah… I don’t get it either.

Though Jones was able to latch on with the Jacksonville Jaguars after passing through waivers – turning in a decent enough season before landing on IR with an Achilles injury – Douglas wasn’t so lucky, as he was claimed by Carolina and ended up joining Philly legend Matt Rhule as a member of the rapidly rebuilding Panthers.

Okay, maybe calling Douglas’ plight “unlucky” is a tad unfair, as the East Orange native was able to prove himself a player capable of thriving in a Cover 2 scheme, all the while setting himself up for a new contract in 2021 thanks to a solid showing in 2020 (more on that here). Normally, that would be enough for Douglas to earn a new contract to remain with the Panthers long-term, but after signing Cam Erving, Haason Reddick, Denzel Perryman, and about a dozen more players in free agency, the Panthers’ top snap-earning cornerback remains on the open market, with no external option procured to replace him.

Is that a coincidence? Are the Panthers just really happy with incumbent corner Troy Pride, or did Douglas’ underwhelming end to the 2020 season leave new Carolina general manager Scott Fitterer wanting more?

Either way, the Panthers’ loss could be the Eagles’ gain.

Now is Douglas a lockdown NFL starter? Will he be in the NFL a decade from now, let alone in 2023? That largely depends on how his 2021 season shakes out but for a team like the Eagles, who are in need of a CB2 and will likely draft at least one defensive back in the first three rounds of the forthcoming draft, signing a 26-year-old cornerback with 52 games of experience in a midnight green uniform surely isn’t the worst idea, especially when you consider he’s still very good friends with CB1, Darius Slay.

From talking about shoes to arguing about basketball fandoms, Douglas and Slay have had about as many Twitter interactions as they had days together as teammates, and it’s clear the two remain close almost one year after initially joining forces both as members of the Eagles and as clients of the ‘Footwork King’, Rischad Whitfield.

Given that Douglas played fairly well in a Cover 2 scheme down in Charlotte, where his exemplary ball skills were highlighted and his lack of elite outside speed was mitigated by having two deep safeties to mitigate any coverage errors, the idea of bringing him back to serve as perimeter cornerback competition isn’t a particularly hard one to fathom, even if your other free agent defensive backs like T.J. Carrie have more experience playing under Jonathan Gannon from their shared year together back in Indiana.

Heck, Douglas even wore the number 24 when he landed in Carolina, presumably a loving tribute to his short-term mentor back in Philly.

Kwon Alexander fits the bill of a Jonathan Gannon LB. dark. Next

No matter how you slice it, the Philadelphia Eagles need to sign someone to compete for their second perimeter cornerback spot, as you just can’t count on the draft to provide a Day 1 starter, even if they are able to have their pick of the litter with the 12th overall pick. If that player is T.J. Carrie, as suggested by Adam Caplan, that makes a ton of sense, but for my money, securing the services of a former Eagle with five picks, 34 passes defensed and 180 tackles to his name just makes more sense, especially when you consider he’s remained good friends with Darius Slay despite their time apart. I mean, hey, why not see if that chemistry can translate onto the field?

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