The Eagles barely needed Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie on Sunday against St. Louis.
The former Cardinal was only on the field for 19 plays because the Eagles didn’t have to play nickel defense much, according to Sheil Kapadia of Philly.com. DRC covered the slot on 18 of his 19 snaps; Nnamdi Asomugha stayed on the outside.
Asomugha gave up a big reception and had a long pass interference in his first game as an Eagle. Those were the only two times he was targeted.
The Eagles secondary ultimately looked as good as advertised, giving up only 5.97 yards-per-attempt. That’s largely because of the team’s pass rush.
New pickup Jason Babin had two sacks. Trent Cole and Darryl Tapp each had a sack, and Cullen Jenkins had a fine first game. While the team’s rush defense and linebackers could be an issue, it was a fine start for Juan Castillo’s new defense.
Castillo didn’t even need to use all the team’s new toys.
