Philadelphia Eagles: 3 reasons Byron Jones should be free agent target

Jones would fit perfectly in Schwartz’s defense

Ever since Jones made the switch from safety to corner in 2018, he’s been one of the best cover corners in all of football. According to Pro Football Focus, Jones has recorded a 74.1 coverage grade in single coverage over the past two seasons, which is good for 11th best in the league during that time.

Schwartz routinely had his corners play on an island last season, and more often than not, the Eagles corners got burnt or man handled by the wide receiver they were covering.

Coming out of college, Jones put on a show at the scouting combine in 2015. He jumped 12 feet, three inches in the broad jump, which was eight inches further than anyone else jumped. He also nearly broke the combine record with his vertical jump, jumping 44 1/2 inches.

Again, this was the best mark of any player at the combine that year. Not to mention, Jones ran a 4.36 second 40-yard-dash at his pro day.

At just 27-years-old, Jones hasn’t shown any signs of losing his freakish athletic ability. Not only does Jones possess the speed to keep up with almost any receiver he’s lined up against, but standing at 6-foot-1, he has the height and leaping ability to contest any ball thrown his way.

Jalen Mills never had the speed to keep up with top tier wideouts and Ronald Darby never had the ability to contest passes because of his short stature and lack of physicality. Jones has the ability to do both.