Philadelphia Eagles: Greg Newsome II’s game is too sweet to ignore

Consistency and the NFL are hardly synonymous.

A team can be on top of the world, their quarterback can be a borderline MVP, and suddenly, in the blink of an eye – or three increasingly bad seasons – they can be picking in the top-10 and have their path back to Super Bowl contention anything but certain. When that happens, typically, the team uses said top-10 pick – for the sake of argument, let’s call it six – to land a marquee, bluechip, gamechanger of a player from which to build around for the foreseeable future.

Or, you know, you can trade down from six to 12 in order to load up on future draft picks and kick that can down the road.

Why, you may ask, is this relevant? Well, because there’s no guarantee the Philadelphia Eagles will actually pick at 12 overall in the 2021 NFL Draft, even after acquiring the pick not one month prior – heck, if recent reports are to be believed, it’s more likely than not that the pick will ultimately be used by someone else, with the Eagles either trading up for a player like Kyle Pitts (should he fall) or trading down to recoup more picks for the future.

If that happens – or “human trade machine” Howie Roseman decides to parlay any of their three Day 2 picks to move back up into the first round – there isn’t a more exciting player expected to be drafted in the early 20s than Northwestern cornerback Greg Newsome II.

Greg Newsome II would look darn good in a Philadelphia Eagles uniform.

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There’s a generally held belief that there are two top cornerbacks in the 2021 NFL Draft – Patrick Surtain II and Jaycee Horn – followed closely behind by Caleb Farley (assuming health) and then the rest of the class.

If you want to land a cornerback who can come in and start right off the bat, you’d better pick either Surtain or Horn, or hope like heck that a player available outside the top-15 can put it all together and perform like Sean Murphy-Bunting right out of the gate as opposed to Joejuan Williams, Noah Igbinoghene, or the score of other cornerbacks who take a little longer to get their NFL legs under them, if they ever do at all.

Between you and me, I don’t think that’s a fair assessment.

Sure, I like Horn, Surtain, and Farley as much as the next guy, but they aren’t the only players who could come out of the 2020 NFL Draft as long-term starters. Greg Newsome II, for instance, presents some serious potential trapped inside the body of an NFL All-Pro; all he needs is to land in a scheme that allows him to shine.

A three-star recruit out of IMG Academy, Newsome spurned the likes of Boston College and Arkansas to attend the media capital of the Prairie State – not to mention the alma mater of both Julia Louis-Dreyfus and ESPN’s Michael Greenberg – at Northwestern University. Though some will knock the 20-year-old Chicago native for his lack of elite opponents in the Big 10 West or for his lack of statistical dominance over his 17 game career, when you actually turn on the tape, it’s hard not to fall in love with what Newsome brings to the table now and just how good he has the potential to be.

Deployed almost exclusively on the perimeter in longtime Wildcats defensive coordinator Mike Hankwitz’s 4-3 defense, Newsome made his bones covering outside receivers in mostly Cover 4 looks, both deployed near the line of scrimmage and off the ball. He tracked the ball well both in the air and pre-snap, kept opposing receivers in front of him, and was more than willing to drop the wood when need be. Had Newsome been in the SEC with the very same tape, he’d surely be considered a true shutdown cornerback waiting in the wings, but through the six games he committed to tape in 2020, the 6-foot, 192-pound coverage specialist remained steadfast, regardless of whether he was facing off against Illinois or Ohio State.

Factor in a strong showing at the Northwestern Pro Day capped off with a 40-inch vertical, a 1.50 10-yard split, and a 4.37 40 yard dash, and you get the athletic profile of a player who has all of the physical tools needed to become a long-term starter on the outside moving forward, maybe right out of the gate for the right team.

Fortunately, the Philadelphia Eagles are one of those teams with a scheme that fits Newsome’s style of play and a desperate enough need for cornerback help that he could surely see the field right away.

Assuming Howie Roseman doesn’t go out and trade for another starting-caliber cornerback like Ronald Darby in 2017 or Darius Slay in 2020, or luck out and land the next Josh Norman in the fifth round, Newsome could have all of the tools necessary to immediately see action right from the jump without being brutalized by opposing quarterbacks, especially considering he has the dynamic duo of Rodney McLeod and Anthony Harris overtop to clean up any of his mistakes.

Assuming the Eagles opt to rely on Avonte Maddox as a traditional, slot-only cornerback instead of moving Darius Slay around the formation depending on the matchup – which is what the Colts opted to do with Kenny Moore and Xavier Rhodes respectfully – Newsome could surely slide right into the team’s currently vacant cornerback two spot without trouble. Jonathan Gannon could switch Slay and Newsome off from left side to right depending on the matchup and even have the optionality to utilize either corner as a surprise blitzer depending on the situation.

Next. The case for double-dipping on defense in the draft. dark

I’m not saying the Philadelphia Eagles couldn’t do the exact same thing with Jayce Horn, Patrick Surtain, or even Caleb Farley (if healthy); I’m just saying the difference between the four cornerbacks isn’t as huge as some may assume. If Howie Roseman decides to trade down out of pick 12 or up from pick 37, Greg Newsome II isn’t just a consolation prize for missing out on the top-3 CBs; he’s a legitimately talented defensive back who could thrive in the NFL just like he did for three solid seasons at Northwestern. Pair him up with a premier edge rusher like Kwity Paye or Gregory Rousseau (more on that here), and the Eagles’ once-dominant defense could be back in no time.

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