Through his first three seasons in the NFL, all with the New Orleans Saints, defensive back C.J. Gardner-Johnson had a total of five interceptions. The Saints traded Gardner-Johnson to the Philadelphia Eagles on August 30 for a fifth-round pick in 2023 and a sixth-round pick in 2024, giving a 2025 seventh-round pick back in 2025.
Film Room: Chauncey Gardner-Johnson is a huge part of Eagles’ defensive overhaul
Through his first eight games in the Eagles’ secondary, Gardner-Johnson has… five interceptions, which leads the league. He got the fifth on Thursday night in Philly’s 29-17 win over the Houston Texans, which kept the Eagles as the league’s only undefeated team.
The pick came with 8:23 left in the third quarter, and at that point, the game was tied at 14. Houston quarterback Davis Mills made an ill-advised throw under pressure, and Gardner-Johnson made a great play to turn the ball over.
The Eagles had been playing with their food before that, but after Gardner-Johnson’s interception, they scored touchdowns on their next two drives, putting the game out of reach.
In conjunction with star cornerbacks Darius Slay and James Bradberry, Gardner-Johnson has become a fulcrum in a defense that ranked second in the NFL in DVOA (behind only the Denver Broncos) through Week 8. They also ranked second in Defensive Passing DVOA through Week 8, behind only the Denver Broncos. Quite an uptick from ranking 24th in overall Defensive DVOA and Defensive Passing DVOA in 2021.
One reason the Eagles found Gardner-Johnson so attractive is that they had a safety problem last season. Outside of Rodney McLeod, who signed with the Indianapolis Colts in the offseason, they didn’t have a legitimate pass defender at the position(s). It’s the primary reason this defense in 2021 allowed 18 catches on 43 targets of 20 or more air yards for 580 yards, one interception, four touchdowns, and an opponent passer rating of 110.4.
In the first eight weeks of the 2022 season, on those same types of deep throws, the Eagles had allowed four completions on 22 targets for 136 yards, one touchdown, no interceptions, and an opponent passer rating of 68.0. Their EPA per play allowed on deep throws dropped from +0.28 to -0.35.
That’s why they got Gardner-Johnson. What they did with him to change the arc of his career was even more interesting, and has a predecessor in Pennsylvania’s other NFL team.