Nick Sirianni preaches competition to his players. So when Marcus Epps and Avonte Maddox sit side by side in the Eagles’ defense room and get some rest, they go head-to-head in spicy games of Kahoot! — a popular quiz game.
“He always beat me by three points,” said Maddox.
If Epps has as good security as it does with Kahoot! then the secondary Eagles this year might be okay.
At least that should be the hope. Because barring another James Bradberry-esque takeover — which remains possible — Epps will be a starting safety for the Eagles in 2022.
“The coaches, they have expressed their confidence in me,” Epps said this week. “Of course I have a lot of confidence in myself. But like every other year, man, I still have to come in to prove it. I still have a lot to prove.”
That’s probably a pretty unpopular statement among Eagles fans: that Epps is going to be a starter. After all, the Eagles went after some top protections this off-season and came off empty. So now it looks like they’re falling back on Epps – maybe in a way too – who could be their secondary’s weak spot. But just after the design, GM Howie Roseman expressed his confidence in Epp. His teammates share that confidence.
And there are reasons to believe that Epps will do just fine in a starting role in 2022.
Just look at his performance in 2021. Epps started last season as a deep player in secondary but due to injuries from Rodney McLeod and Anthony Harris, the role of Epps grew. After that, he played well enough to basically force Jonathan Gannon to use a rotation at the back. Epps played too well to keep him off the field.
In 2021, Epps played 48% of the Eagles’ defensive snaps, scoring higher than both McLeod and Harris before him, according to ProFootballFocus. Epps was PFF’s 18th best safety in 2021. McLeod and Harris were in 43rd and 53rd respectively.
Epps played in 16 games last season with 3 starts and had an interception, 5 pass breakups and 62 combined tackles.
That success last year contributed a lot to Epps’ confidence.
“I thought I played pretty solid last year,” he said. “I thought I had laid a good foundation for myself this year to build on.”
This offseason, the Eagles re-signed Harris, but let McLeod walk. And without any other significant additions to the position – although they have expressed interest in the likes of Marcus Williams and Tyrann Mathieu – it’s pretty clear that Epps is lining up for a starting gig.
Could the Eagles find yet another safety? Secure. But Epps isn’t worried about that. And his teammates don’t seem to care about him.
“He’s definitely poised to be a starter,” Maddox said. “He comes out, he puts in the work, he stops the time, he studies in the movie room, he has great foundations and details. He makes plays. Last year he made plays. He’s not afraid to come up and tackle and he is absolutely capable of running 40 yards left and 40 yards right to stop that fade ball or help that corner on the fade ball I’m excited to see what he goes this year to do.”
Epps, 26, arrived in Philadelphia in the 2019 season as a mid-year claim from the Vikings, who drafted him in the sixth round that year. The Eagles brought in Epps to basically replace veteran Andrew Sendejo, who had been knocked out a few days earlier. Epps saw some time on the defensive in 2019, but then saw his role expand in 2020 and again in 2021.
He’s been here for two and a half seasons now and Epps is getting better and better. A former Wyoming walk-on, Epps is no stranger to working his way up the depth chart.
“Our coaches have said something, ‘You have to prove yourself and correct yourself,'” Epps said. “That’s kind of what it’s like for me, even in college. I was a walker. I had to prove and correct myself. That’s how my mentality has always been. My mindset hasn’t really changed. Always have that chip on my shoulder and feel like I have to prove myself. And even if I prove myself, I have to correct myself. I just keep trying to show that I belong.”
Most people would agree that Epps played pretty well in a limited role last season. But the big question is whether that success will translate if he’s a starter.
Was Epps good last year because he has a very small part and excelled in it? Or was he good because… he’s just good?
“I mean, some people want to find the sample size,” Harris said last week. “I think you just look at the player, the ability and what he’s done with the opportunity he’s been given. And nobody can predict the future, but he’s doing all the right things to give himself the chance to be just as successful are like everyone else.
“I think you look at that and you keep giving players more opportunities to keep doing and succeed with whatever they get.”
The Eagles have improved just about every position in their defense this offseason. They added to the defensive line with Jordan Davis. They brought an edge rusher in Hassan Reddick. They found legitimate linebackers in Kyzir White and Nakobe Dean. And this week they landed their CB2 in Bradberry.
On the outside, it looks like the Eagles still need to improve on the safety position and maybe they still will.
But it’s also possible that the Eagles think they already have their answer on the roster.
Subscribe to the Eagle Eye podcast
Apple Podcasts | Google Play | Spotify | stitcher | Art19 | Watch on YouTube
#Eagles #Marcus #Epps #Ready #Starter
Comments
Post a Comment