Philadelphia Eagles: 5 players to watch against the Cleveland Browns

Avonte Maddox, CB

Let’s shift over to the defense now. Eagles rookie cornerback Avonte Maddox has been an intriguing prospect throughout the preseason. Before the start of training camp, Maddox was somewhat buried on the depth chart, despite playing strictly in the slot. Sidney Jones and De’Vante Bausby were battling it out in the nickel as Maddox sat back and learned to play at the NFL level.

It didn’t take long for Maddox to get into a grove, though. Quickly, Bausby became the forgotten veteran and Maddox issued some stiff competition to the second-year veteran, Jones. The former second-round pick was considered to be a lock to start on the defense this season, but the young rookie has made the Eagles decision a little bit tougher.

This week should be the difference-maker in the battle of the slot cornerback position. Although we believe that Jones currently has the edge in the battle, Maddox is not too far off. It wouldn’t be surprising to see Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz issue Maddox some first-team reps within the first two quarters to see how he fares against the ones.