Eagles Veteran Cornerback May Be All The Depth Needed At Safety

Philly brought back a player it drafted in 2018 who became a standout cornerback, but one who battled injury, and is now being cross-trained at slot and safety.

Avonte Maddox meets with the media during the Philadelphia Eagles' minicamp. / By Ed Kracz/SI Eagles

PHILADELPHIA – For nearly a month, Avonte Maddox was a cornerback without a team.

The Eagles released him on March 7 before finally agreeing to return on April 4 with a one-year contract in tow.

Maddox, now 28 after being drafted by Philly in the fourth round of the 2018 draft, wasn’t too concerned about where his next home would be while he waited.

“It was just chill for me,” he said. “I wasn’t really sweating it too much. When it’s the offseason, I focus on my family and friends for the most part.

“Me and (general manager) Howie (Roseman) kept a great relationship. He told me if nothing works out, you’re always welcome back here. I felt comfortable being here. I’ve been here for seven years. Philly is my home, so I’m definitely comfortable being inside his building and being with the players and the coaches, and just being around the organization.”

One of the best slot cornerbacks in NFL always comes with a footnote – when healthy. Maddox has battled injury most of his career, but especially the past two seasons when he played just 13 of a possible 34 games.

“I’ve had a great amount of injuries,” he said. “That’s another thing I’ve been working on this offseason, attacking my body and making sure I come back as healthy as possible. I feel like this year is a great year for me.

“The past two years, it’s been the turf toe, and I didn’t really get to participate in OTAs or camp. This year I was able to go into the offseason and get my body right, and I’m coming back fully healthy, ready to compete and participate in the OTAs.”

Maddox could be a crucial versatile piece, toggling back and forth between cornerback and safety after spending spring doing both.

Most everybody it seems expects, or at least hopes, Justin Simmons will walk through the Eagles’ front door any day now and rescue a safety group where depth is in short supply.

The longtime Denver Broncos safety has a history with Philly defensive coordinator Vic Fangio and is supposed to be a perfect scheme fit. Sometimes players make sense on the outside, but not inside the front office.

Linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel made sense, but the Eagles let him go from the Miami Dolphins, where he excelled in Fangio’s defense last year and was one of Fangio’s favorite defenders, to the Minnesota Vikings.

The Eagles have starting safeties Reed Blankenship and C.J. Gardner-Johnson and a third in Sydney Brown who should eventually have a heavy workload once he is ready to return from ACL surgery, and that may not be in time for the opener in Brazil.

After that, it’s mostly the inexperienced Tristin McCollum and undrafted free agent Andre Sam.

So having Maddox work at safety makes sense, and don’t forget James Bradberry who is supposed to be learning that role as well, though he skipped OTAs and practiced for about two minutes on the first day of mandatory minicamp before leaving with an injury.

“As you get older, you get a little slower,” he said. “Other than that, I’m learning the safety spot and the nickel spot as well.”

If he learns the safety spot particular well, there may not be a need for Simmons.

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