Philadelphia Eagles: The curious case of Caleb Farley’s draft stock

In case you haven’t noticed, the Philadelphia Eagles haven’t been particularly active in the cornerback market through the first month of the 2021 NFL calendar year, despite having a serious need for a second outside option across from Darius Slay.

While some may point to the team’s lack of cap space as the main reason for their inactivity, as they’d surely struggle to win even the most modest bidding war for a contested CB, it’s borderline neglectful to go into the 2021 NFL Draft without at least one external addition to the team’s defensive backs room, if for no other reason than it may influence Howie Roseman to go off-board and draft for need versus best player available (more on that here).

If Roseman’s decisions to draft Jalen Reagor and Jalen Hurts are of any indication, it’s clear Roseman is more than willing to pick a player he likes regardless of their projection, for better or worse.

So, assuming the Eagles doesn’t make a surprise trade for a starting-caliber CB a la Timmy Jernigan in 2017, one would think the team will be selecting some corner with one of their first four picks, right?  They surely can’t count on Avonte Maddox, Michael Jacquett, or Kevon Seymour to start oppose Slay, even if it means reaching for a player to fill an immediate need.

But what if a player who checks all of the boxes is available but his injury concerns present a red flag? Would the Philadelphia Eagles draft a cornerback who may not be ready to go for Week 1 and may never again return to his All-ACC form?

Should the Philadelphia Eagles be in the market for another injured corner?

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Caleb Farley is one of the most exciting players in the 2021 NFL Draft.

He’s a smooth athlete, an eagle-eyed ballhawk, and has the size/speed/athletic profile of a player who could start in the NFL at cornerback in pretty much any scheme for a very, very long time.

In a normal year, where teams played full schedules, and players weren’t able to opt-out, Farley’s third season at Virginia Tech likely would have cemented him as a top cornerback, maybe the top cornerback, in this years class, but instead, his on-field ability to directly translate to the NFL level has been called into question due to his decision to opt-out.

Now granted, in a vacuum, Farley’s decision to opt-out really shouldn’t affect his draft stock all too much. Ja’marr Chase didn’t play in 2020, and he very well may be the top non-quarterback selected in this year’s draft. But when you factor in a late-March microdiscectomy – aka back surgery – that shouldn’t affect his ability to play this fall but may limit the 22-year-old this summer, one has to wonder just how high a team would be willing to select Farley versus similarly talented players or just how far he will fall as a result.

Could a team in the teens – say, maybe 12 – appreciate Farley’s upside and accept him even if he has to take things slow in training camp? Or would that risk be better absorbed by a team in the 20s who probably already has good cornerback and thus would be more willing to play the long game with a player bolstering Pro-Bowl potential?

After suffering through the Sidney Jones debacle, can the Philadelphia Eagles really afford to take another bite at the injured CB apple?

That, my friends, is the question.

On paper, Farley is a perfect fit for what the Eagles are looking to do at the cornerback position. He’s tall, led the ACC in pass breakups with 16(!) in 2019, and has experience playing both wide receiver and quarterback, dating back to his freshman season at Virginia Tech and high school, respectfully. Assuming he can pick up the speed of the NFL game without much trouble, which isn’t too much of a concern, considering he learned how to play cornerback while recovering from a knee injury during his first day with the Hokies, Farley could surely start alongside Darius Slay as soon as this fall and remain a starter long after number 24/maybe 2 hangs up his cleats.

But then again, what if Farley suffers yet another injury? While he’s long since recovered from his freshman year torn ACL, suffering back injuries are different. Even if his doctors have suggested that he’ll be good to go for Week 1 and that the injury isn’t chronic, none of that is set in stone.

But then again again, freak injuries happen every day; just ask John Wall, who slipped and tore his Achilles at home. Selecting any player has risk, so if Farley’s talents outweigh his concerns, he should be drafted without prejudice, even if he isn’t up to speed until midway through the 2021 season.

If anything, selecting a player like Farley over a less talented corner like Greg Newsome II would actually signify a long-game mentality that has been largely absent from the Eagles’ decision making as of late, save maybe for the decision to draft Davion Taylor in the third round over more NFL-ready linebackers like Troy Dye.

When healthy, Farley could surely help the Eagles finally fix their defensive secondary once and for all. He picked off six passes in 23 games at Virginia Tech, had 19 passes defensed, and projected to do just about everything well at the NFL level. If given a chance to work through his game over a full season, there’s no reason he couldn’t be as impactful for the Eagles as Jaylon Johnson was for the Bears last fall, even if he’s ultimately drafted higher than the 50th overall selection.

No matter how you slice it, the Philadelphia Eagles can’t afford to leave the second day of the 2021 NFL Draft without a starting-caliber cornerback. If they can land that player at pick 12, either with Patrick Surtain II or Jaycee Horn, that’s awesome. But if both are gone, and the team has to “settle” for a wide receiver like Jaylon Waddle, they then need to turn their attention to landing the best cornerback around at pick 37 or potentially even trade up to secure someone’s fifth-year option in the 20s. If the whole Sidenay Jones debacle has the Eagles’ front office shy on drafting another injured cornerback high, I can’t judge them, but if he’s given a clean bill of health, and the team feels confident in his abilities, there isn’t a more intriguing trade-up/down target than Caleb Farley, as he perfectly fits the mold of a Jonathan Gannon cornerback. In the 20s, he’d be a steal.