Eagles Secondary Preview: Roster Locks, Bubble Candidates, Practice Squad

PHILADELPHIA – The bodies keep coming. The Philadelphia Eagles are up to 18 now. That’s how many they have among the 90 on the roster who play in the secondary.

The latest to join the mix is Shon Stephens. Maybe you heard Stephens is the cousin of Pittsburgh Steelers corner and former Penn Stater Joey Porter if you heard of Stepehens at all before the Eagles signed him on Monday night.

Eighteen should about cover it as the Eagles prepare to open their first of several OTAs on May 20. The spring workout sessions end with a mandatory minicamp in early June. So, don’t expect Justin Simmons to walk through the door anytime soon.

Not all 18 will make the final roster, though you could probably make a case that each has a legit shot.

Cooper DeJean John McMullen/Eagles Today

General manager Howie Roseman wasn’t messing around when he saw this team’s greatest Achilles’ heel last year was pass defense, which ranked 30th overall in the league and surrendered a whopping 35 touchdowns in the air. Only the Washington Commanders gave up more with 39.

So, Roseman threw a lot of stuff at the wall in the hope that some of it would stick, including an injection of youth via the draft the past two years, that he hopes will not only make the unit better the year but for years to come, and competition.

As it stands now, on May 7, here’s my take on how it shakes down:

SAFETY LOCKS (3): Reed Blankenship, C.J. Gardner-Johnson, and Sydney Brown.

Notes: Coming off a late-season ACL tear, Brown’s status for the opener in Brazil is uncertain.

You could add rookie Cooper DeJean into the safety group, but the feeling here is he will start out at cornerback, though he is listed as a defensive back on the Eagles’ roster.

CORNER LOCKS (4): Darius Slay, Quinyon Mitchell, Kelee Ringo, and DeJean.

Notes: It would be nice to see Slay, now 33, be given some series’ off throughout the early part of the season to keep him fresh as the season grinds on.

BUBBLE (6): Safety Tristan McCollum, cornerbacks Isaiah Rodgers, Avonte Maddox, Zech McPhearson, Josh Jobe, and Tyler Hall.

Notes: This category is most packed. There will be some good competition beginning this spring but it should really heat up once training camp begins.

Either Rodgers or Maddox – and quite possibly both – will make the roster. Right now, they will battle for a spot, as will each of the six players listed here.

Rodgers is probably closer to a lock than a bubble player, because he can play on the outside, something he did while with the Indianapolis Colts.

Jobe and McPhearson, who missed all last season with an Achilles tear, are standout special team players, but the Eagles added some players at other positions who could also excel there.

Hall was signed in the offseason as a slot option. That was before the Eagles re-signed Maddox and Rodgers was reinstated from his one-year gambling suspension.

PRACTICE SQUAD (3): Sam Andre’, Mekhi Gardner, Stephens

GONE (2): James Bradberry, Mario Goodrich

Notes: The Eagles should do Bradberry a solid and release him so he can start working on finding a new home.

However it shakes out, there is no question Roseman added plenty of competition for a select few jobs, and it should help make for an entertaining camp and preseason as the secondary sorts itself out.