Anthony Mazziotti
Patrick Robinson has been one of the many pleasant surprises for the Eagles this season. Unfortunately for the best team in the NFC, he entered the concussion protocol earlier this week. It is uncertain if he will play on Monday.
Lucky for the Birds, they have options when it comes to replacing their incumbent slot corner back. This is a testament to Howie Roseman, Joe Douglas and defensive backs coach Cory Undlin. Roseman and Douglas made sure to add some talent at defensive back in the offseason, as they brought in Ronald Darby, Patrick Robinson, Corey Graham, and drafted Rasul Douglas and Sidney Jones.
Undlin has, seemingly, been under fire since becoming the defensive backs coach in 2015. This season due to equal parts having NFL talent on the corners and coaching, Undlin has been one of the better position coaches here. He (and probably Jim Schwarz) are getting the best football possible out of players who were questionable heading into the season. Think of Robinson and Jalen Mills, they are playing really good football this season.
Back to the issue at hand, the solution the coaching staff conjured up last Sunday against the Giants was to drop Malcolm Jenkins to the slot and put Corey Graham back at safety. This is a good solution in the short term. Graham is pretty good when it comes to defending the pass: he has 17 career interceptions and 64 passes defended. I don’t know his stats against the run off hand, but it’s safe to say that he is more known for his ability against the pass more than against the run.
He isn’t a liability against the run by any stretch of the word, but I think it would play more to the Eagles’ advantage to have a few different packages to replace Patrick Robinson if need be.
To me, this starts with activating Rasul Douglas. ‘Sul played pretty well in his limited reps while Darby was injured. He has two interceptions, 11 passes defended, and 19 tackles in 12 games this season. He showed that he isn’t afraid to step up and make a tackle and always has a knack for being around the ball. Plus, he has the swagger to play corner in the NFL, a highly underrated aspect of the position.
Rasul Douglas did indeed belt the official on the ass for giving him the incomplete pass signal he was looking for. LOL pic.twitter.com/WL2BY68tKd
— Sam Monson (@PFF_Sam) October 13, 2017
I wouldn’t be shocked if the Eagles come out in a defensive back set that includes Darby and Douglas on the outside with Mills dropping to the slot while keeping Malcolm Jenkins and Rodney McLeod over the top. If they go to a dime set expect to see Corey Graham out there too.
Activating Rasul Douglas gives the Eagles defense another layer of depth and versatility. I still expect to see the nickel set that includes Corey Graham at safety and Jenkins in the slot, but getting Douglas some reps will go a long way in his development. He has proven in the past that he can be the “next man up” once this season, there’s no reason he can’t do it again.
Keep your eye out for number 32 on Christmas, the dude’s a play maker.
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