3 Thoughts on a potential breakout year for Eagles CB Avonte Maddox

2. Some of the bad perceptions he’s given may not be the reality.

Here’s a newsflash. Cornerback play in the NFL is on a downslide. Yes, Maddox can be lumped into some of that. He’s been up and down, but he has a tremendously high ceiling, and once he’s given a few more snaps and he’s surrounded with healthy teammates that allow him to focus on his job, he’ll only get better.

This dude can ball, and when he’s been on top of his game, some rather memorable plays have been a byproduct. It wasn’t that long ago that we were using familiar terms like ‘steal’ when Philly found Mr. Maddox in Round 4 of 2018’s selection meeting and injuries to some of his teammates forced him into action early as a rookie.

For the most part, the youngster didn’t blink, racking up 35 total tackles, two picks, a half a sack, and a forced fumble on 540 defensive snaps. He broke up four passes as well, and you could argue that, had he been more experienced, two or more of those PBUs could have been additional picks on his resume.

Opposing quarterbacks were only able to complete 45 percent of the passes they threw in his direction in 2018. Now, in 2019, that number increased to 61 percent, but setbacks are sometimes the best teachers and the experience he gained by failing may have done him some good.

Now, take a look around the current NFL. In a passing league, cornerback play is on a downward spiral. Guys who wouldn’t have been able to cut it on pro rosters several seasons ago are starting on average and below-average units. Charvarius Ward and Bashaud Breeland started for the Super Bowl-winning Kansas City Chiefs. They probably aren’t the starters if they’re transplanted elsewhere.

Ladies and gentlemen, guys like Byron Jones are getting a ton of attention for a reason. Shutdown corners and guys with elite coverage skills are rare. That partially explains the explosions we’ve seen from so many young quarterbacks over the past few seasons.

Guys who can run, who can play both safety and corner, and can cover aren’t growing on trees. Maddox is one of the guys who qualify. Sure, he’s raw, but with the proper coaching, he can be just as good as some of the guys we pray Philly targets in free agency. Marquand Manuel, Philly’s new defensive backs coach, isn’t stepping into a job where he doesn’t have any talent to work with.