I’m not sure anyone had the Eagles at 4-5 heading into New Orleans (3-4 with Carson Wentz) or predicted they’d have as many injured contributors as they do right now, but yet here we are.
The defensive back department has been hit significantly by the injury bug — most recently by losing starter Ronald Darby for the rest of the 2018 season with a torn ACL. It’s entirely possible the Super Bowl 52 champion played his last snaps in Philadelphia, considering his contract expires this year and I can’t imagine he’ll be extended unless he signs a cheap one-year "prove it" deal.
All hope isn’t lost, though. Rasul Douglas stepped in for Darby after Darby went down with an ankle injury week one against Washington in 2017 and played well in his absence.
Douglas certainly didn’t meet expectations in his first start of 2018 filling in for Jalen Mills versus Dallas on Sunday night, but there’s a reason to still be optimistic: Douglas is only in his second year after being drafted out of West Virginia in 2017. He still has plenty of time to learn how to perform well at the pro level of football, and there’s no reason to bail on the former 3rd-round draft pick.
There’s also been talk that if Jalen Mills is out against New Orleans, Sidney Jones will take his spot on the outside, which could potentially give a sneak peek at the future of outside corner play in Philadelphia. When Jones and Douglas were drafted, I was immediately excited at the idea of that tandem, but knew it wouldn’t be a possibility for a while.
Now, we might finally get our first look at 32 and 22 starting opposite each other. Here’s to hoping Drew Brees won’t continue his MVP-caliber season and have a field day on the young defensive backs. It’s probably gonna happen, but we can hope.
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