NASHVILLE, Tenn. — If you thought the Eagles wouldn’t miss Rodney McLeod that much, I’m guessing after watching Sunday’s 26-23 loss to the Titans, you feel a little differently.
The entire secondary deserves blame for that mess, but it certainly seemed like the Titans were happy to attack the middle of the field, where McLeod notably wasn’t.
"Rodney's a great player," Malcolm Jenkins said. "He's somebody who's played a lot of ball, who understands situations, communicates well. So anytime you lose anybody like that it's hard to replace. But I don't think there were plays we look at and say, 'Aw, Rodney would have made that.'"
But maybe Rodney would have made those plays. Like the key 4th-and-15 that Corey Graham misplayed. Or the game-winning touchdown pass that Avonte Maddox slipped on his way to defend.
The reality is that the Eagles have replaced one of their best and most underrated defensive players with a 33-year-old veteran in his last NFL season and a rookie who never even took practice reps at safety until this past week.
Yeah … that’s not ideal.
It is a little telling — and eyebrow-raising — that the Eagles decided to play Maddox as an extra safety in the dime package over Deiondre’ Hall and Rasul Douglas. The Eagles traded for Hall before the season and he’s actually a safety, one with NFL experience. Maybe he’s still catching up with the playbook or maybe the team views him only as a special teamer.
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Douglas, meanwhile, is buried on the depth chart and doesn’t have a spot right now. He seems to fit the mold of a safety, but the Eagles have always been very hesitant to make a switch, even after losing a starter.
Instead of Douglas, the Eagles went with Maddox, who told reporters after the game that he had never played safety before. He played 20 snaps Sunday; it was his first time playing on defense in a real NFL game. So playing in what was basically his first NFL game and ending up in 1-on-1 coverage in OT with the game on the line isn’t exactly ideal.
“We put a lot into it,” Jenkins said. “I thought [Maddox] had a great week of preparation, he dove into the film. The biggest thing for a guy transitioning from corner to safety is your eyes and your angles. It’s one of those things I thought he grasped well. He’ll continue to learn the nuances of the position as we go and open up some of those packages.”
It’s hard to hear it after the way that game ended, but Graham and Maddox had their good moments too. Graham made a huge TFL and Maddox reeled in his first career interception while playing in center field.
And there just aren’t a ton of options at safety right now. The free agent pool is barren and the best safety who could be available in a trade (Earl Thomas) broke his leg Sunday.
The Eagles are going to have to roll with what they have for now. They can probably make it work, but they’re going to miss McLeod for the rest of this season.