Eagles' CB Highlights Key To Success In A Vic Fangio Defense

When a Vic Fangio-tinted defense breaks down, it's usually about communication in the back seven.

Dec 10, 2023; Arlington, Texas, USA; Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Darius Slay (2). / Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports

PHILADELPHIA - By now it should come as no surprise when things go wrong with any Vic Fangio-tinted defense, the odds-on favorite for being the culprit will be disjointed communication in the back seven.

It’s the same with successful variations like the 2022 Jonathan Gannon Eagles D, which blew coverages at the worst possible times in Super Bowl LVII against the Kansas City Chiefs or the 2023 Sean Desai turned Matt Patricia incarnation that turned blown coverage into a religion last season.

Veteran cornerback Darius Slay highlighted the issue and foreshadowed concerns for the upcoming season in which the man himself and not a first or second-generation copy will be in charge.

Appearing on Chris Long’s “Green Light Podcast,” Slay pointed to the crux of the defensive issues last season beginning with Avonte Maddox’s torn pec in Week 2, a domino that kicked off a revolving door in the slot.

“It’s the communication thing,” Slay said when discussing the struggles. “Like for me, with me and [Avonte], I understand what “Te” wants from the nickel position. So if we in a combination I know like "Te" will be like Ok, I know for a fact he’s gonna take the low guy whenever he stutters.”

From there losing both 2022 starting safeties – C.J. Gardner-Johnson and Marcus Epps – in free agency affected things as well as shorter-term injuries to the rapidly improving Reed Blankenship who dropped out for spells here and there. Slay himself then missed the final four games of the regular season due to a knee injury.

The result was a ton of young bodies on the field who didn’t have much time working together. 

“I had a lot of young guys rotating in and out, so as a veteran and leader, it was like, ‘How do I go about it?’ [...] So, that was just difficult, and with [James Bradberry], me and JB just tried to do our best to help out, but a corner’s really only as good as his safety communicating to him — sometimes that’s just how it is,” Slay said.

Having a healthy Maddox and Gardner-Johnson back at safety this season should help things immensely. Still, rookies Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean will almost assuredly get significant playing time as could first-year Eagle Isiah Rodgers and/or the up-and-coming Kelee Ringo.

It will take time to build chemistry with the new and emerging players so there will be some Jim Schwartz-trademarked startup costs along the way but the pieces are there for the Eagles to have a top-tier defensive backfield by the second half of the season 

“It’s about the combination and understanding each other, communicating and talking because everybody had different views of the game,” Slay said. “Everybody’s eyes see different stiff so the best thing about a DB to be a successful secondary is for everybody gotta see it the same way.”

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