Eagles Camp Preview Safeties: Where’s Sydney Brown on Depth Chart?
PHILADELPHIA - Much like linebacker the Philadelphia Eagles are looking for two new starters at the safety position after losing C.J. Gardner-Johnson and Marcus Epps in free agency.
The organization seems somewhat better equipped to do it on the back end, however, because there is a trio of players in the mix with second-year upstart Reed Blankenship and free-agent pickup Terrell Edmunds getting the head start in spring OTAs. Third-round rookie Sydney Brown is also expected to be given every opportunity to compete and is expected to be one of the long-term answers at the position.
Gardner-Johnson was undeniably a playmaker last season after being picked up via trade from New Orleans on Aug. 30, albeit an enigmatic one. He tied for the NFL lead in interceptions with six despite missing five games due to a lacerated kidney but there is a reason the Saints moved on for little compensation (a 2023 fifth-round pick and a 2024 sixth-rounder). That manifested itself in Philadelphia as well as Gardner-Johnson haggled over his worth and ended up in Detroit on a one-year deal that doesn't match what he did on the field.
Epps, meanwhile, was the team’s ironman, playing in all 20 games through Super Bowl LVII and 1,241 defensive snaps. In the regular season, Epps, a very intelligent player, missed only 10 snaps in just one game against Tennessee. He's now in Las Vegas on a two-year deal.
Blankenship was a real find as an undrafted rookie out of Middle Tennessee State, first catching the eye of the coaching staff when the pads came on in training camp and then unseating 2020 fourth-round pick K’Von Wallace behind the scenes as the top backup.
When CJGJ went down Blankenship stepped in and held up very well, most notably becoming the first undrafted rookie to ever intercept Aaron Rodgers. Over the final seven games, Blankenship played as many as 69 snaps at Dallas and even earned a role in the postseason before Avonte Maddox returned from injury.
He was so good in what was an admittedly small but somewhat significant sample size that Pro Football Focus graded Blankenship as the ninth-best safety in football. The Eagles even played musical chairs once Gardner-Johnson returned and Maddox criss-crossed him on the way to the MASH Unit. With Maddox out at slot cornerback late in the season, instead of just defaulting to backup Josiah Scott as they did earlier, the Eagles moved CJGJ from safety into the slot when a nickel back was needed and inserted Blankenship in at safety next to Epps.
As for Edmunds, he’s a 2018 first-round pick of Pittsburgh who was a five-year starter for the Steelers on what was typically a pretty good defense. The issue is fit in that Pittsburgh played a more traditional way with a free and box safety with star center fielder Minkah Fitzpatrick and Edmunds.
The Eagles like their safeties to be interchangeable in a Vic Fangio-inspired scheme and it remains to be seen if Edmunds can handle the coverage responsibilities of a post safety.
Brown also played in the box with Illinois in college and will be asked to make a similar transition which could slow his development at least somewhat.
Wallace has turned into a valuable special teams player while Justin Evans is an athletic wild card whose career was stalled by injuries before rebooting things a bit in New Orleans last season.
On the developmental front, Tristin McCollum is a 6-foot-3, 195-pound prospect with cornerback/safety versatility.
Depth Chart:
S - Reed Blankenship; Justin Evans; Triston McCollum
S - Terrell Edmunds; Sydney Brown; K’Von Wallace
WHAT’S CHANGED: The Eagles lost two solid starters and brought in two bargain free agents and a third-round pick to try to replace them. Gardner-Johnson’s splashy playmaking ability will be tougher to replace than the steadiness Epps provided. The optimism of getting Brown up to speed immediately as the 66th overall pick is about opportunity more than anything else. Rewind back to the 2022 draft and even the first-rounders – Lewis Cine before he was injured and Dax Hill – couldn’t get on the field.
COACHING: You can read about the defensive backs coaches in our cornerbacks preview by banging the link.
THE CEILING: Brown hits the ground running, Blankenship isn’t exposed with more reps and opposing offenses having more film on him, and Edmunds proves to be the same durable steady if unspectacular presence he was in Pittsburgh who offers versatility as a potential LB/safety hybrid in big nickel looks.
THE LONGSHOT: Evans has talent and the Eagles have has an eye on him for a while so this isn’t just a camp body as some have speculated. He was once the 50th overall pick by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2017 and a full-time starter for the Bucs by his sophomore season, Then the injuries took hold.
A significant turf toe problem was followed by a devastating Achilles tear and 21 of 25 starts to begin Evans' professional career turned into three years of inactivity. He’s still only 27, though, and showed some of his old juice as a hybrid slot/safety in New Orleans last season. Evans’ coverage skills are also a better fit for what the Eagles want for their safeties than Edmunds or even Brown, although the latter’s lack of playing time as a post safety with Illinois was factored into his projection as a player so the Eagles believe Brown can make the transition.
WHO STAYS/GOES: Blankenship and Brown are the young players in the plans for years while Edmunds and Evans are here to prove it. Wallace, meanwhile, is a bit typecast as a special-teamer now and Evans will likely take his job with a healthy summer.
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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
