Philadelphia Eagles best remaining free-agency fits

Is Steven Nelson really a good fit for the Philadelphia Eagles?

While there are many cornerbacks on the free-agency market, such as Josh Norman, Gareon Conley, and Eagles fan-favorite Cre’Von LeBlanc, all eyes are pointed towards former Steeler Steven Nelson. Nelson has been on Eagles fans’ minds for weeks, and many teams across the league seem to be interested in him. The Eagles, of course, should be one of those teams.

If the Eagles can manage to outbid other teams for Nelson, they will be getting an excellent CB2 to play alongside Darius Slay. Nelson has only started less than 15 games twice in his six-year career: his rookie season, and in 2017 when he was on injured reserve to start the season. Nelson has not only stayed relatively healthy throughout his career, but he has also performed well. Since 2018, he has had at least one interception every season, including 4 in 2018, and two in 2020. He has also not had less than 40 tackles since his rookie year.

The market for Nelson will be fierce, but the lack of CB depth forces the Eagles to be active in that bidding war. If the Eagles manage to sign Nelson to a multi-year deal, they have not only secured a solid CB2 for the team but a future CB1 if Slay begins to regress as he enters the season at 30 years of age. Losing out on the Steven Nelson sweepstakes means the Eagles may have to start rookie Zech McPherson opposite Slay, which could lead to rookie mistakes and holes in the Eagles’ secondary. This, along with the general lack of depth at cornerback, shows how impactful Steven Nelson would be to the Eagles’ defensive unit.