Eagles Can Already See What Makes Woolen A ‘rare Guy' At Cornerback

Eagles can already see what makes Woolen a ‘rare guy' at cornerback originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

It’s June and it’s football in pajamas.

And, despite this being football not at real speed, newly acquired cornerback Riq Woolen looks like he’s going to be a star on Sundays.

To think about the Eagles adding a player of Woolen’s caliber to a cornerback unit that already has two All-Pros in Cooper DeJean and Quinyon Mitchell should be incredibly exciting to watch come September when the Eagles kick off a new season.

“Honestly, I feel like we are one of the best secondary groups in the league,” Woolen said confidently this week. “These guys have showed that with their work. I have showed it with the work that I have put in being able to join them. The sky is the limit.”

Naively, the thought when Woolen signed with the Eagles was more along the lines of a complementary piece to an already talented group rather than the highlight of OTAs.

In back-to-back days during mandatory minicamp, Woolen made game-changing type of plays. On Day 1, Jalen Hurts threw a deep ball to DeVonta Smith on a go route and Woolen broke up the timing on the route. On Day 2, Woolen picked off Hurts on a crossing route to Dallas Goedert in the middle of the field.

“A unique skill set,” DeJean said about Woolen. “Very long and explosive fast. It’s crazy to see how explosive he is and how he can catch up to routes when guys are getting out of breaks — it will be fun to watch this year.”

It’s rare for a player to stand out to the extent Woolen did during OTAs and mandatory minicamp. Media members would discuss after practice how everyone wrote his name down daily as someone that caught their eye.

We knew Woolen would be the biggest cornerback in the room, listed at 6-foot-4. We didn’t know how glaring of a difference it would be when you see Woolen standing in the huddle, towering over even Kelee Ringo, who is listed only an inch shorter than him.

“Well, he’s a rare guy in that you don’t see many corners in the league that are 6-4,” defensive coordinator Vic Fangio said in late May at the start of OTAs. “You don’t see many that are 6-2 or even 6-1 and there’s a reason for that. It’s hard to find guys at those heights that can move and mirror receivers that are hard to cover. He can do that for a guy his height. He’s into being here and I am really looking forward to working with him.”

Yeah, when you get that kind of praise from Fangio, who is normally pretty blunt and to the point with his comments, you know you are doing something right.

Woolen is using his size to his advantage. He’s a little different than the rest of the cornerbacks and that’s a good thing.

“Just talking to coaches, it’s pretty interesting,” Woolen said. “They haven’t coached a tall corner. I haven’t had these coaches before. It’s a new learning curve for both of us. It’s great to have a coach that has never had a player like me.”

The fifth-year cornerback is coming off four years with the Seahawks and, from what we have seen, is the answer the Eagles have been looking for at the spot opposite of Mitchell.