The Philadelphia Eagles are 6-1. They’re coming off a 14-point win over the Miami Dolphins, who entered Week 7 as a one-loss team with Super Bowl aspirations. They’ve got a lineup littered with veteran All-Pros and recent first round picks waiting to join them amongst the NFL’s recognized elite.
But the Eagles aren’t satisfied with that. So on Monday, hours removed from shutting down the Dolphins, they boosted the weakest link of the league’s 11th-ranked defense. Welcome to Pennsylvania, two-time All-Pro safety and eight-year NFL veteran Kevin Byard.
It’s the latest in a string of trades that always seems to work out in general manager Howie Roseman’s favor. Byard was left to languish on a Tennessee Titans team with a narrow path to contention in 2023. Rather than force a veteran — and his $19 million 2024 cap hit — through a rebuild in Nashville, the Titans sent one of their most recognizable players to greener pastures in the NFC.
The cost was not significant.
The Tennessee Titans are trading All-Pro defensive back Kevin Byard to the Philadelphia Eagles. The Eagles will be sending the Titans a 2024 5th and 6th rounder and safety Terrell Edmunds, per multiple league sources.
— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) October 23, 2023
All it took to pry an expensive, but reliable veteran from Tennessee was an inexpensive and unreliable veteran (Terrell Edmunds, who’d made just two starts after signing with Philly this offseason) and a pair of Day 3 draft picks. It’s a move that will immediately boost a secondary whose 2023 production hadn’t matched its 2022 standard.
The Eagles’ passer rating allowed last season was 81.6, third-best in the NFL en route to a conference title. This fall, that number has climbed to 93.9 — 10th-worst. Part of the problem has been a decline from veteran cornerbacks Darius Slay and James Bradberry, who have merely been “good” after exceptional 2022 seasons.
But a larger chunk of that problem has been instability at safety. CJ Gardner-Johnson left in free agency and injuries have meant no player has started more than five games at the position so far this season. Reed Blankenship’s growth has been promising in stretches, but Edmunds and Justin Evans had their share of issues in coverage next to him.
Now Blankenship pairs with Byard, a player who has proven himself a capable eraser of short and long routes thanks to dynamic closing speed and impressive awareness of how plays will unfold. Make no mistake; this is an upgrade for the Eagles and a patch over one of their rare weak spots. So did they win this trade?
Let’s take a look at the grades.