The Eagles returned to the postseason in 2021 thanks to the improvement of several key players on both sides of the ball. The path to success in the NFL stems from an organization’s ability to hit and develop homegrown talent.
Philadelphia had several players make huge jumps in 2021, but none bigger than Avonte Maddox according to Pro Football Focus.
PHILADELPHIA EAGLES: CB AVONTE MADDOX
PFF Grade change from 2020 to 2021: 37.8 → 71.0 (+33.2)Maddox was moved exclusively to outside corner for 2020, and it went poorly, as evidenced by his 37.8 PFF grade. In 2021, Maddox moved to the slot where he belongs and saw a drastic improvement. He actually finished the year as a top-five-graded defensive back in the slot. Maddox’s tackling was on point, with just five misses on 77 attempts and 24 defensive stops.
Maddox was among the highest graded cornerbacks in the NFL for the bulk of the season and year-by-year improvement resulted in a team-friendly, market-value contract extension that benefited both sides.
With Maddox firmly entrenched as the slot cornerback, Philadelphia can focus on adding a talented cornerback to pair with Darius Slay.
