The Eagles Top 12 Corners Since 1980

The recent history of the Philadelphia Eagles cornerback situation has not been one worth ranking, nor watching. Outside of the magical 2017 season, the backfield has been a mess. The Eagles have not used any of their first round draft picks to address the position since 2002, and the other resources have only proven to be a Band-Aid on an open wound. As a fan of football, I enjoy watching a shutdown corner face a top wideout on a weekly basis. There is something real and raw from watching two top athletes battle it out Mano Y Mano. I miss seeing these battles from the Eagles. I would like to see them focus on the cornerback position more going forward. Drafting a top CB every 4–5 years should be prioritized. The lack of draft capital being used was apparent when I reviewed the history of the past 40 years at the position, as was the lack of talent.

1. Eric Allen (7 Seasons) 2nd RD 1988 34 INT
2. Troy Vincent (8 Seasons) 1st RD 1992 (Eagles signed him 1996) 28 INT
3. Lito Sheppard (6 Seasons) 1st RD 2002 18 INT
4. Sheldon Brown (7 Seasons) 2nd RD 2002 19 INT
5. Bobby Taylor (9 Seasons) 2nd RD 1995 19 INT
6. Herman Edwards (9 Seasons) undrafted 1977 33 INT
7. Asante Samuel (4 Seasons) 4th RD 2003 (Eagles signed him in 08) 23 INT
8. Roynell Young (9 Seasons) 1st RD 1980 23 INT
9. Jalen Mills (5 Seasons, 1 was S/CB hybrid) 7th RD 2016 5 INT
10. Ronald Darby (3 Seasons) 2nd RD 2015 6 INT
11. Mark McMillian (4 Seasons) 10th RD 1992 8 INT
12. Nolan Carroll (3 Seasons) 5th RD 2010 3 INT

Admittedly, interceptions do not tell the entire tale of a cornerbacks job, but that has always been one of the stats that corners are judged by. In recent years more stats such as: passes defended, QB rating when ball is thrown at them, and coverage ratings have told a bigger story. For the sake of space and time for this article I have listed the interception totals in the rankings, but I did not include the new stats as they were not available for players pre 2010.

I think the rankings show a direct correlation between using first and second round draft capital and having top cornerbacks on your roster. The top 5 corners of the past 40 years in Eagles history were all drafted in the first 2 rounds, they also played out their first contracts and received a second or third which only enhanced the value of the original draft pick.

The only outliers on the list are Asante Samuel selected in the 4th rd (who would have been much higher on the list had he played more than 4 seasons in Philadelphia) and Herman Edwards who went undrafted.

*** Season & Interception totals are both calculated while playing for the Eagles ***