The Philadelphia Eagles can now officially go after James Bradberry

When news broke a little under a week ago that the New York Giants would probably release Pro Bowl cornerback James Bradberry to free up cap space, it was music to the Philadelphia Eagles‘ ears.

That’s right, after whiffing on big-named options like Stephon Gilmore in free agency and striking out on plug-‘n-play corners like Sauce Gardner and Andrew Booth Jr. in the draft, the Eagles might have just lucked into an opportunity to sign a top-tier CB2 who could theoretically stick around for years to come.

Now granted, a release wasn’t guaranteed. The two sides could have agreed to a contractual renegotiation, or another team could have swooped in and offered up something tangible for Bradberry’s services, but fortunately, that wasn’t meant to be; the New York Giants have released Bradberry from his contract, and he’ll be free to sign wherever he pleases just in time for camp.

So, now that James Bradberry’s release has gone from theoretical to official, should the Philadelphia Eagles still be interested in his services? To paraphrase Hulk Hogan, heck yes, brother.

The Philadelphia Eagles can’t afford not to pursue James Bradberry.

If the Philadelphia Eagles don’t add another cornerback before the regular season starts this fall, they’ll probably be okay.

The team has four intriguing options set to compete for the spot opposite Darius Slay in Zech McPhearson, Tay Gowan, Mario Goodrich, and Josh Jobe, and while none have more than 100 defensive snaps to their credit at the NFL level, surely one of the four can transcend their draft status – or lack thereof – to become a Steven Nelson-level performer, right?

… let’s hope so, because nothing tanks a defense faster than having a weak link at perimeter cornerback, even in a scheme like Jonathan Gannon’s where a two safety shell is expected to be the default look.

If you’re willing to take that bet and hope that someone like McPhearson can become a long-term starter, that is a totally valid opinion, but who’s to say Howie Roseman shares it? I mean, the Eagles were in on Stephon Gilmore after all, if the team can afford to sign a veteran option with a higher floor than any of their internal options, why not do so in the pursuit of a second-straight playoff spot?

James Bradberry is that player.

A former second-round pick out of Samford, Bradberry is a tall, savvy perimeter cornerback with extensive experience pressing at the line of scrimmage. While he isn’t the fastest defensive back in the league, as he only ran a 4.5 in 2016, Bradberry has some of the longest arms you’ll see on a cornerback and uses them to attack the ball whenever it’s thrown his way. At 28, Bradberry is a good bit younger than Slay, and the duo could theoretically play together for years to come before the latter takes over the CB1 spot, assuming he’s signed to longer than a one-year deal.

While the Eagles have just under $4.97 million in available cash according to Over The Cap, Howie Roseman could easily sign Bradberry to a multi-year deal, say, one between two-three years in length, and financially backload the contract. As a prominent proponent of signing players now only to pay them later, bringing in a player like Bradberry would perfectly fit into Roseman’s ethos.

Will the Philadelphia Eagles ultimately sign James Bradberry? Only time will tell; there aren’t that many teams who are looking to pay up for starting cornerbacks at this stage in the game, so the Eagles might not have to bid with too many other front offices for his services. But should they? Yes, as much as I like Zech McPhearson and company, there’s no harder position to play on defense than CB2, and securing an elite one would be a massive upgrade for Jonathan Gannon’s defense.