The Philadelphia Eagles have had to change things up in their secondary, and reports are now indicating that it could have an impact on Michael Carter II. Carter, an interesting veteran the Eagles traded for at last year's deadline, will be back in Philadelphia for a second season.
After multiple moves in the secondary, Philadelphia suddenly finds itself with opportunities and questions. The team traded Sydney Brown to Atlanta, re-signed Marcus Epps, and landed J.T. Gray, as well as the Carter move.
According to Zach Berman, all of these moves could have an impact on what Carter does next year.
“The Eagles shook up the safety spot Friday when they traded Sydney Brown to Atlanta and quickly re-signed Marcus Epps and added J.T. Gray,” Berman wrote for The Athletic. “Mukuba is the top option and returns from a season-ending injury as a starter, but the second spot is uncertain after Reed Blankenship departed. Epps was a steady veteran following Mukuba’s injury; he had usurped Brown on the depth chart. The Eagles re-negotiated Carter’s deal to keep him around this season and are expected to give him more of a look at safety. If the season started this week with everybody healthy, they would be the top two options after Mukuba at safety.
“Of course, there’s nearly six months until the Eagles play. Look for this spot to evolve. Gray seems like more of a special teams signing than someone added for a defensive role. Sam and Johnson are back after time on the practice squad and spot duty in games. The Eagles will look in the draft and scour the trade market for an option. But don’t be surprised if Carter pushes for playing time.”
Carter has primarily been known as a corner, but the Eagles’ defense under Vic Fangio is always looking for guys to move around, and he’ll have a chance to do just that now.
Carter is also in a position where he has to show some flexibility if he wants to play as much as he can. There’s a lot of time before the season starts, so let’s see.