Philadelphia Eagles: Overview Of The Safety Position

The NFL draft still did not clear up who the other starting safety was for the Philadelphia Eagles, but OTAs might have. Chip Kelly switched Walter Thurmond to safety, and now he’s been getting snaps in practice alongside Malcolm Jenkins. Whether this is just an experiment or a permanent thing is still to be determined, but moving Thurmond to safety has thrown a wrench in many people’s picks for who the other starting safety is going to be.

The Eagles have a lot of players either whose main position is safety or who have had experience at safety in the past. Some of those players, though, have only played safety in college or haven’t played it outside of practice. They now have six players on the roster who are listed as safeties, and there are still a couple guys who can play both cornerback and safety. With all of these players on the roster at the moment, only so many of them can make the final roster. Here’s an overview of each of the safeties and where they stand at the moment:

Malcolm Jenkins

Barring a season-ending injury or something else catastrophic, Jenkins is going to start at safety. There’s no question about it, and Chip Kelly has said this many times. Jenkins’ three interceptions and 14 passes defensed in 2014 were both career highs. Like Thurmond, Jenkins also started out as a cornerback and made the switch to safety and it worked out, so it definitely can be done.

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Walter Thurmond

As I mentioned earlier, while it seems like Thurmond has been getting a lot of reps at safety, Chip could always mix it up again and throw him back at cornerback if need be. But, I think he’ll stay at safety, and he seems to be the favorite for the other starting safety position at the moment. This would likely take the pressure off of all the other unproven safeties on the roster, as well as give Brandon Boykin an easier chance at staying as the slot cornerback.

Earl Wolff

Wolff probably has the most to lose this offseason. He probably still has a chance to be the other starting safety based on his past experience as a starter, but if he continues to under-perform or get hurt, he could be released before the season even starts. The former fifth round pick has just one interception in the 18 games and seven starts he’s had since being drafted. If he continues to be nothing special, he could be on his way out.

Chris Maragos

I would be shocked if Maragos didn’t make the team, but I’d also be just as shocked if he was named the other starting safety. He was primarily signed to play special teams, and he’s been great at it, nearly making the Pro Bowl last season. I think it’s pretty safe to say he won’t be playing much on defense, but he’s still a key player on the roster.

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Jerome Couplin III

Nicknamed “The Osprey,” Couplin is the biggest question mark in this group of guys. Lots of people have been praising his play and his incredible wingspan, but he has very little NFL experience thus far and would need to make a splash in training camp to get a chance to start. I think he still has a real shot at making the roster, but I’ll have to see more of him in an Eagles jersey to be able to determine if he’s ready to contribute.

Chris Prosinski

Prosinski is another player who mainly played special teams for the Eagles last year. He likely has the smallest chance of becoming a starting safety in 2015. I think he still has a chance at making the roster if he continues to perform on special teams, but only so many safeties can make the roster. Someone has to be left out.

Ed Reynolds

After spending all of last season on the practice squad, I’d be surprised if much changed for Reynolds unless he made a big impact in training camp and preseason. He’s still young enough where he can remain on the practice squad, so my guess is he’ll spend another year there with the sudden overload in safeties on the team.

The Wild Cards

Beyond the seven guys I just mentioned, the Eagles still have a few guys who have safety experience at some point who could always make the switch if necessary at some point between now and the beginning of the regular season. Eric Rowe, Nolan Carroll and Jaylen Watkins all fall into this category, as well as free agent signing E.J. Biggers.

That’s a lot of guys for a position that will likely only have four or five slots on the 53-man roster. Rowe seems to be likely to play cornerback, and Carroll has recently received praise for his performance at cornerback. But if guys like them have the versatility to play multiple positions, it might be more valuable to keep them on the final roster as opposed to guys like Wolff or Prosinski. Mandatory minicamp starts tomorrow, and I’m sure we’ll get some more answers about a few of these guys, but some of them definitely will not be around come Week 1.

Next: Philadelphia Eagles: Expectations for Eric Rowe

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