Philadelphia Eagles: 5 X-factors to making shocking Super Bowl run

2. Defensive Backs

Entering the season — as I’ve said before — Philadelphia had one of the better rosters in the NFL. However, the big weakness that you could’ve circled was the defensive back group.

Outside of the numerous injuries that the Eagles have suffered this year, defensive back is among the main reasons that the team has struggled this season. Malcolm Jenkins used to be one of the best safeties in the entire NFL at one point but, as his performance has declined a bit, he’s a fringe top-10 player at the position.

At the cornerback position, the Eagles are even worse off. The defense has no true No. 1 or standout corner on their roster. Philadelphia has been sending out players like Ronald Darby, who was once a good corner but has fallen off of a cliff this year.

Besides Darby, the Eagles have Avonte Maddox, Jalen Mills and Rasul Douglas as their primary cornerbacks. To make matters worse, every player in that group has dealt with injuries throughout 2019 and even at the start of the playoffs still. The Eagles have consistently had one of the more dominant defensive lines in the NFL but the lack of true defensive back talent is hurting their defense badly.

The Eagles don’t necessarily need elite-level play from their defensive backs, even though it would help greatly. Simply, they need their defensive backs to not be a problem and an area that opponents are able to attack relentlessly in the postseason.