The Future Is Now: Quinyon Mitchell Emerges as Eagles' Shutdown Corner While Fangio Faces Safety Dilemma

The Philadelphia Eagles selected Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean with their first two picks in the 2024 NFL Draft with sights set on building one of the NFL’s top cornerback duos of the future.

If the 2024 season, and playoff run from the Eagles’ prized young cornerbacks show anything, it is that the future is now in Philadelphia’s secondary.

As ESPN’s Ben Solak points out, Mitchell’s .8 yards surrendered per coverage snap last season places the former Toledo standout alongside Defensive Player of The Year, Patrick Surtain, Christian Benford, Cobie Durant, Derek Stingley Jr., Riq Wolen, D.J. Reed, Jaylon Johnson, Jaycee Horn, and A.J. Terrell.

That’s some elite company for an ascending 24-year-old cornerback with first-round pedigree.

“When we break [Mitchell’s numbers] into its commensurate parts,” Solak writes, listing Mitchell as one of the second-year defenders primed to become elite. “We see why Mitchell was considered a CB1 the moment he walked onto the field. He discouraged targets (only targeted on 13.4% of his coverage snaps, below the league average of 14.4%) as teams quickly figured out he had the goods. In each of his first six starts, he was targeted on at least 10% of his coverage snaps.

“For the next 10 weeks of the regular season, that happened only four times. He won at the catch point (catch rate 3.4% below expectation, per Next Gen Stats), and when a catch occurred, he limited YAC better than anyone else in football (1.5 yards after the catch per reception). Some of that is structural — the Vic Fangio defense is meant to encourage underneath throws that lead to quick tackles — but a lot of that is Mitchell.”

Mitchell’s play improved as the season went along and he became more comfortable in coordinator Vic Fangio’s scheme, pulling down two interceptions and posting 14 total tackles and four pass breakups in the Eagles’ four postseason games.

Ahead of Mitchell’s second season, Fangio doesn’t have any worries about the top cornerback on his depth chart taking a leap.

“He’ll be fine,” Fangio recently told reporters. “He’s got a really good work ethic. He’s got tremendous pride and always wants to do well. He will be fine.”

Vic Fangio Envisions Eagles’ Cooper DeJean Playing Safety

As Eagles training camp continues towards the Sept. 4 opener against the Dallas Cowboys, Fangio’s secondary remains a bit of a jigsaw puzzle.

While Reed Blankenship is anticipated to open the season at one of the safety spots, it’s an open question who will be alongside him when Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, and the Dallas Cowboys come to town to open up the NFL season.

Whether the Eagles fill the slot internally, or sign a veteran such as Isaiah Simmons remains to be seen.

Fangio, however, is confident in DeJean filling that role and playing at a high level, if necessary.

“Yeah and just like I thought he can be a good safety,” Fangio told reporters, after watching DeJean work in at safety over the course of several practices. “Just the other day we had a route that we struggled with last year in games to pick up and he did it like he’d been a safety his whole life. So yeah, he’ll be a good safety if we need him there.”

DeJean’s versatility makes him a legitimate option, especially after holding opposing quarterbacks to a meager 81.3 passer rating, according to Pro Football Focus, while also posting three quarterback pressures.

In addition to DeJean, rookie Andrew Mukuba and Sydney Brown are in the mix to start alongside Blankenship. However, Mukuba battling through a shoulder injury this summer throws a bit of a wrench into his development and evaluation.

Whether Fangio is forced into pulling that rip-chord rather than playing DeJean at the nickel will likely be determined by how some of the young safeties perform through the rest of this summer and if general manager Howie Roseman adds at the position in the weeks ahead.

The clock though, is ticking towards a fairly critical decision for one of the NFL’s premier defenses.