Eagles secondary can be NFL's best thanks to Vic Fangio's unrivaled vision

For defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, this Philadelphia Eagles secondary is built to thrive in his long-preferred 4-2-5 alignment.

While his former Dolphins players frequently struggled with some of his concepts, this assortment of Eagles talent is just different.

Philly defenders are being tried out in different roles early on, in camp, sometimes in-season too. The majority of this nucleus got extended looks in different roles during their college playing days as well. Positional flexibility is being coveted more than ever. Once in the building? It's focused on in real time once players enter The NovaCare Complex and get to work behind the scenes.

Catalysts for change: Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean

The league quickly took notice after a struggling 2-2 Eagles team inserted a fully healthy Cooper DeJean into primetime. Let's not forget, though, even though Slay was still playing at a fairly high level, Quinyon Mitchell was already making his presence felt - quietly - but man, was an impact being made.

Mitchell graded out amongst the league's top corners week-in and week-out as the season unfolded, and when it comes to corners, especially young ones, no news can be good news: He was shadowing people in silence on gameday.

As early as Week 1, and certainly during camp, Fangio had already been moving Mitchell around. Learning multiple roles from the jump, being exposed to different looks and ideas from different vantage points within the defense, can all prove to be invaluable in the long run.

I thought he (Mitchell) did well. He played both nickel and outside corner. He’s a good player and he’s going to be a good player. We just have to be careful not to overload his plate too much because nickel is a full-time position as well as corner is, and he’s having to learn both right now and they are two drastically different positions."Vic Fangio as told to Brooks Kubena

Regarding No. 33, Fangio inserted the versatile Iowa second-round rookie into the nickel spot once he was finally in good health. The defense began to truly take flight. Not only did DeJean shine, but that also marked an epic run of success spelling 16 wins over the team's final 17 games. A bit of a freak Jalen Hurts injury aside in that one Commanders matchup, and it may have been a clean 17 consecutive victories.

Make no mistake, there were other reasons that fueled such a run following the break - plenty of fireworks along the way on offense as well - but the link to Mitchell's quiet rise and DeJean's insertion coming out of the bye correlated well into what would develop into the league's top defense.

At the present time, the core remains strong, interchangeable, and highly coachable - great attributes to do far more than merely hold down the fort. Despite the loss of savvy vet CJ Gardner-Johnson (FA-Hou), the unit still welcomes a steady captain back deep.

Reed Blankenship brings balance, teammates can switch spots on a dime

Reed Blankenship excels in his current role, hovering for deeper plays downfield while consistently attacking upfield in the run game. We all saw some of his postseason plays; Blankenship is an underrated stalwart of this defense. Like his teammates, he's content flying under the radar, too. But he not only cleans up on plays, he makes them on his own, too.

And Fangio has really dialed up great looks involving the likes of Kelee Ringo (Georgia) and even Sydney Brown (Illinois) - Brown can be quite dynamic, he just needs to stay healthy over time, which has been such a tough challenge thus far. With his twin brother doing big things over in Cincy, there is no way I'm writing him off yet. The Brown brothers are notoriously hard workers in league circles and beyond.

Kelee Ringo ready for a bit of star power?

To me, Ringo has true breakout potential at corner sans the beloved Darius Slay. When called upon last season, the former fourth rounder out of Georgia flashed. He's continuing to develop, he didn't shine early like Mitchell and DeJean, but he's made very solid strides in limited action. He's also 6-foot-2 and was one of the youngest players in the '23 draft class.

He will deliver the wood, and he's already made several outstanding plays on the ball when inserted into more packages and looks. Look for Fangio to continue to feed him more and more responsibility as he vies to stick within the best five. I think an impressive season is in store for yet another Bulldog.

Former Giants Adoree' Jackson will also strive to claim that other spot opposite star first-year corner Quinyon Mitchell early on. Jackson is low-risk and he's shown he can stand out at times out wide. It will be interesting to see how he fits within this defense.

Q-Mitch is already a shutdown corner, and his career is just getting started really. The rook out of Toledo is a strong foundational piece, as is DeJean.

Andrew Mukuba fits like a glove

Longhorns second-rounder Andrew Mukuba arrives headstrong on bringing the heat early on.

A somewhat seamless transition could be in store for him. Able to move around - and yes, even play the nickel too - Fangio finds himself with another talented member of the secondary to configure different looks and consider different ideas with.

Fans could potentially see Coop lining up out wide at times, or just staying where he is at that crucial nickel position. Coach Fangio has alluded to him liking him just fine where he is.

Ringo can slide around in a pinch, too. So minus Reed - who is a very good safety regardless - Fangio does not need to over-think corner and safety depth as much as most coordinators might have to.

There is so much fluidity amongst the group, Ringo appears ready, Mukuba brings a brand-new motor, and this secondary unit is once again teeming with Eagles who can excel in different areas when called upon.