Philadelphia Eagles: All’s quiet on the free agent cornerback front

The Philadelphia Eagles did not have a particularly good cornerback rotation in 2020.

Outside of Darius Slay, who largely came as advertised despite the occasional struggles, the rest of the unit failed to live up to their preseason pedigree, especially Avonte Maddox, who failed to develop into the Darrell Green-esque Pro Bowler that Howie Roseman envisioned when he shipped out both Rasul Douglas and Sidney Jones.

Even the team’s pair of slot cornerbacks, Cre’Von LeBlanc and Nickell Robey-Coleman, turned in a pair of seasons that were statistically unrepresentative of their typical standards in the worst possible way, which is particularly disappointing considering slot cornerback looked like a strength heading into the season.

So naturally, with only one player truly penciled in on the depth chart in ink and both of their slot cornerbacks still unsigned to new contracts, one would assume the Eagles would be all-in on further fortifying the position heading into the 2021 season, right?

Thus far, that hasn’t been the case.

While the Birds could still go out and nab themselves a starting-caliber player at any point moving forward – if that happens, keep an eye on former first-round pick Dre Kirkpatrick – it’s hard to see that happening, as they only have roughly $4.8 million in cap space to work with and many of the top names on the market like Xavier Rhodes are already off the board.

Hmm… if only there was another way to procure a young, uber-talented cornerback on a long-term, cost-controlled contract?

The Philadelphia Eagles look primed to draft a first-round cornerback.

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The Philadelphia Eagles haven’t drafted a cornerback since 2018.

They only drafted four cornerbacks during the Doug Pederson era – with only one, Avonte Maddox, still with the team – and haven’t selected a defensive back regardless of position since all the way back in 2002, when they selected Lito Sheppard 26th overall.

Had the Eagles used a few more of their premium picks on the position over the last half-decade – and selected better players with the picks they actually used- maybe the team wouldn’t be in such dire straights at one of the most important positions in the game and surely could go best player available with their first overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.

Unfortunately, we don’t live in a perfect world, and that surely isn’t the case.

Barring a surprise trade for a proven starter, or the decision to sign someone like Jason McCourty as a stop-gap starter on the outside, it would appear the Eagles have turned their attention towards landing a plug-‘n-play starting cornerback, likely with their first-round draft pick.

If you throw on your best Hercule Poirot mustache, it sorts of makes sense, right? There are three cornerbacks who are projected to go in the top half of the 2021 NFL Draft; Patrick Surtain II, Jaycee Horn, and Caleb Farley, depending on his status. None of those players are projected to go in the top-six and likely would have generated a mixed to poor reaction based on the value of other players who could be on the board like Penei Sewell, Kyle Pitts, and Ja’Marr Chase.

Had Howie Roseman stood pat at sixth overall, maybe the pressure to land a generational receiving threat like Pitts/Chase or a long-term answer to left tackle would have been too great to pass up, but at 12, the pressure should be all but dissipated. While one can still argue if a player like Jaylon Waddle, Rashawn Slater, or Micah Parsons – as if the Eagles would draft a first-round LB – is individually better than Surtain and Horn, they are at least in the very same category of prospect.

Factor in the newest rumors that the Eagles may still try to trade back up into the top-10 – maybe with a team like the Carolina Panthers who want to get out of eight overall – and the idea of Philly landing a cornerback who can step in right now, maybe even the cornerback they like most overall, becomes a very real possibility – which is good, because the options sans a first-round addition look pretty grim.

Granted, there are a few solid cornerbacks who could fall to the Eagles at 37 overall, or that could be viable trade-up targets – corners like Greg Newsome II, Asante Samuel Jr, or Eric Stokes – none of those players are necessarily as much of a “sure thing” to roll in and start opposite Slay long-term. If that happens, the Birds can surely still sign a player like Dre Kirkpatrick to come in and compete for a starting spot, even if that keeps a premier player on the shelf for a few weeks while they find their league-legs.

No matter how you slice it, the Philadelphia Eagles simply cannot go into the 2021 season with Craig James, Michael Jacquett, or Avonte Maddox on the outside opposite Darius Slay. In a perfect world, Howie Roseman and company would utilize one, maybe even two of their four picks in the draft’s first two days on long, versatile cornerbacks who can start inside and out and allow Jonathan Gannon to move Slay around the defensive formation to match up on an opposing team’s best player. But even if the Eagles just add a player like Jaycee Horn in the first round, it’ll go a long way to shoring up a defensive secondary that’s been incredibly turbulent over the past few seasons, even if that means having to see another season with Avonte Maddox featured heavily now out of his natural position in the slot. That, my friends, would be sweet.