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In one offseason, the Philadelphia Eagles have gone from a team lacking talent in the secondary to an organization now possibly having too much talent in key positions.
In the offseason, the Eagles traded for Darius Slay, moved Jalen Mills to safety, moved Avonte Maddox to outside cornerback, signed Nickell Robey-Coleman in free agency and drafted Clemson star, K’Von Wallace.
What that means for guys like Rasul Douglas and Sidney Jones remains to be seen, but another familiar name could become the odd man out in a secondary that needs his attitude and cocky persona.
Cre’Von LeBlanc has grown into the guy known as ‘Strap Ent’ around the NovaCare Complex and his presence in the Eagles secondary shouldn’t be taken for granted.
With Nickell Robey-Coleman likely to start in the slot, it’ll key for defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz to not leave LeBlanc stranded on the bench in a reserve role, and instead carve out a role for the physical cornerback on the Eagles new hybrid-versatile secondary.
A smart, physical player who constantly makes plays, LeBlanc utilizes his scrappy demeanor to make up for what he might lack in name recognition.
LeBlanc injured his foot during training camp last summer and was placed on injured reserve for the first half of the 2019 season. On the first day of training camp in 2019, he injured his foot, which would send him to IR. LeBlanc returned for the Eagles 4-game jaunt towards a division title and started in the Eagles must-win matchup in the season finale.
The Eagles could move Robey-Coleman around, allowing him to play on the outside for spells that would free up LeBlanc in the slot. Against powerful passing teams like the Cardinals, Saints or Cowboys, Schwartz could utilize a lineup of his best cover guys, allowing Slay, Robey-Coleman, Maddox, LeBlanc, and Mills or McLeod to all be on the field when things matter most.
Jim Schwartz has the horses, now he needs to build a gameplan that’ll properly use them all.