‘Elite’ Eagles Camp Preview CBs: Best of Both Worlds; Depth Chart
PHILADELPHIA - The Philadelphia Eagles remain deep and talented at the cornerback position after working things out with veterans Darius Slay and James Bradberry in the offseason.
The trio of Slay, Bradberry, and slot corner Avonte Maddox is one of the best in the NFL, The depth is largely unproven but Howie Roseman has put together a wave of intriguing young, athletic prospects with upside, led by 2023 fourth-round pick Kelee Ringo, a lengthy outside option with blazing speed who was graded by most as an early Day 2 pick.
After some more-than-tense moments in which Slay and his wife said goodbye to Philadelphia on social media, Roseman was able to work out a restructured deal with the five-time Pro Bowl selection after things went south with safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson.
The Eagles’ goal was to get two of the three defensive backs facing contract uncertainty after the 2022-23 season – Slay, Bradberry, and CJGJ – back, and that goal was accomplished after some twists and turns along the way.
The first domino was a surprise when Bradberry, a second-team All-Pro expected to leave in free agency, came back on a three-year deal in which the veteran took a little less to stay in a system that suits him.
Slay, who made his fifth Pro Bowl last season, was already under contract but would have been entering a lame-duck season with no guaranteed money left and a big cap number, making the status quo untenable for both sides.
When Gardner-Johnson made it clear he thought he was being lowballed by the Eagles, Philadelphia circled back to Slay and worked out an 11th-hour compromise that salvaged the situation.
On the field, Bradberry, who will turn 30 early in training camp, started all 20 games through Super Bowl LVII. In the regular season, he had a team-high 17 pass breakups and three interceptions while allowing a 55.9 passer rating when targeted, third best in the NFL.
Slay, 32, also stayed healthy. He had 14 PBUs and three picks, and put together one of the great CB games in modern history when he helped shut down Minnesota star Justin Jefferson with five PBUs and two INTs.
Maddox is one of the best inside CBs in the NFL but went through an injury-plagued season in which he missed nine games with hamstring, foot, and toe issues. When he was on the field, however, Maddox was excellent, finishing second in the NFL for forced fumbles from a DB with three.
Outside depth includes Ringo, who fell in the draft due to some shoulder concerns, Greedy Williams, a 2019 second-round pick by Cleveland, Josh Jobe, and undrafted rookies Eli Ricks and Mekhi Garner.
The extra bodies outside enabled Philadelphia to move Zech McPhearson into the slot during OTAs where he ran with the first team as Maddox continued to work his way back from surgery.
The other slot backups are Josiah Scott and Mario Goodrich.
Depth Chart:
LCB - Darius Slay; Kelee Ringo; Eli Ricks
RCB - James Bradberry; Josh Jobe; Greedy Williams; Mekhi Garner
Slot - Avonte Maddox; Zech McPhearson; Josiah Scott; Mario Goodrich
WHAT’S CHANGED: The core is the same but the Eagles added a number of live, athletic bodies who could play in this league with sound and patient coaching. The organization believes Ringo is a future starter and Williams, Ricks, and Garner are all lengthy players who project well outside the numbers. The move of McPhearson inside is also a plus for depth purposes.
COACHING: The biggest change comes with the coaching staff. Highly-regarded secondary coach Dennard Wilson left the organization after being passed up for a promotion to defensive coordinator and is now in Baltimore. Wilson’s assistant D.K. McDonald was elevated to the full-time position coach and Nick Sirianni added two coaches to help him. Taver Johnson is the new assistant DB coach and, for the first time, the Eagles have hired a slot-specific coach in Ronell Williams.
Prior to joining Philadelphia's staff, McDonald spent five seasons at Iowa State, where he served as the pass game coordinator working with the Cyclones' safeties (2019-20) and cornerbacks (2016-18) on Matt Campbell's staff. Campbell is very close to Sirianni.
Johnson has a varied background and 30 years of experience. Prior to joining the Eagles, Johnson served as the defensive pass game coordinator and safeties coach at Eastern Michigan. He helped EMU rank first in the MAC in interceptions (13, tied) and second in opponent completion percentage (54.9 pct.) during a 9-4 campaign.
From 2019-21, Johnson was an offensive assistant (2021) and assistant defensive backs coach (2019-20) with the Oakland/Las Vegas Raiders and he’s also worked in the professional rams for Cleveland. Johnson was also once teh assistant head coach at Arkansas in 2012-13.
Williams is a local product who grew up in Chester and played his college football at West Chester University, a former Eagles training camp home. Williams started his coaching career at nearby Temple before spending the last four seasons as a defensive quality control assistant with the Chicago Bears, where he got to know new Eagles defensive coordinator Sean Desai.
THE CEILING: Slay and Bradberry continue to play at a Pro Bowl level despite being a year older and Maddox avoids the injury bug, putting the Eagles in the conversation for the best CB group in the NFL. Depth-wise, Ringo, Williams, or Jobe will need to catch on so McPhearson can settle into a more natural slot role.
THE LONGSHOT: Garner is 6-foot-2 and 212 pounds and showed some confidence in OTAs after intercepting Jalen Hurts and going a little excessive in the celebration.
Garner bounced around in college starting at Navarro and moving to Louisiana before finishing up in the SEC with LSU where he started all 13 games and led the team with eight pass breakups. Had he returned for a final year of eligibility in Baton Rouge we might have been talking about a potential Day 2 pick in 2024, especially if he ran a little better. The knock on Garner is 4.55 speed but he’s so big and physical that if he can get his hands on receivers he could mitigate that.
WHO STAYS/GOES: The locks are Slay, Bradberry, Maddox, Ringo, and McPhearson and the Eagles are so deep it would be an upset if they didn’t keep six with Jobe being the leader in the clubhouse for that last spot. If things go well this summer this is a position Roseman may use for trade capital to fortify weaker spots on the roster.
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-John McMullen contributes Eagles coverage for SI.com's Eagles Today and is the NFL Insider for JAKIB Media. You can listen to John, alongside legendary sports-talk host Jody McDonald every morning from 8-10 on ‘Birds 365,” streaming live on YouTube. John is also the host of his own show "Football 24/7 and a daily contributor to ESPN South Jersey. You can reach him at jmcmullen44@gmail.com or on Twitter @JFMcMullen
