After a quiet start to free agency, the Philadelphia Eagles made their biggest splash of the offseason thus far by signing Riq Woolen to a oneyear contract reportedly worth up to $15 's learn more about Philly's new starting cornerback by getting a Seattle Seahawks perspective on 's what Mookie Alexander from Field Gulls had to say about Woolen through answers to my Film Review: Riq Woolen's ceiling in Vic Fangio's defense is sky high1 Can you sum up his time with the Seahawks?Woolen has had a bit of a whirlwind career with the was a Defensive Rookie of the Year finalist in 2022 with six interceptions and immediately reminded fans of Richard Shermannot in personality https://www.philadelphiafootballshop.com (https://www.philadelphiafootballshop.com), but being a former WR turned CB with incredible height 6'4 and the bonus of a 40yard dash in the 4.2s which Sherman didn't seasons have involved some frustrating spells of onfield performance, untimely penalties, and even a couple of benchings by Pete Carroll and Mike Macdonald for completely separate advanced stats, Woolen has been one of the better corners in the league, but his story isn't that was a net positive for Seahawks but at the same time it could've gone it actually did.2 How are Seahawks fans reacting to him leaving and signing the contract he did with the Eagles?I'd say the fanbase is mixed at best in terms of his ones who see Riq at his best are disappointed that he left, whereas the ones who have had their fill of Woolen's lowlights and maybe blown some out of proportion are happy he's some respects, this is sort of like how fans viewed DK Metcalf when he was traded, except I believe Riq is way better at his position relative to DK as a 's not like Woolen was getting torched every week, but his worst moments have frequently come in some highleverage situations andor inopportune rise of former Eagle Josh Jobe who got the multiyear extension Riq didn't get, albeit at a lower peryear cost also meant that Woolen went from clearcut starter to technically not being a starter but playing a starterlike workload alongside Jobe and Devon Witherspoon.3 What are his strengths?Woolen is one of the best in the NFL at passes defensed since coming into the league, tied for second among all cornerbacks with long arms and closing speed allow him to cover so much ground and shadow receivers 1on1, such that the window to complete passes against him are yards allowed per coverage snap are outstanding, and he was not a cornerback heavily targeted by opposing he's on his game, you don't notice him because teams aren't throwing at he's in man coverage he is hard to consistently Mike Macdonald he's improved in zone coverage https://www.philadelphiafootballshop.com/collections/nicholas-morrow-jersey (https://www.philadelphiafootballshop.com/collections/nicholas-morrow-jersey), which should be a benefit to going into Vic Fangio's alongside Cooper DeJean and Quinyon Mitchell should make Philadelphia's cornerback room one of the best in the business given all of their respective talents.I'd be shocked if Woolen turned into Adoree' Jackson and honestly be disappointed if he was a Byron Maxwell shouldn't be Philly's top corner like Maxwell was supposed to be, so that should be a reasonable safeguard against disaster.4 What are his weaknesses?Concentration and discipline can include penalties but it's not limited to them.I'm sure you all saw the NFC Championship Game taunting penalty and subsequent touchdown allowed to Puka would've made him a Seattle sports villain for life had they Macdonald's reaction was that of familiar exasperation.I don't like the NFL's taunting rules but Woolen got flagged three times just this past 's had some sloppy pass interference penalties in previous years and in totality has had 3total penalties against him over four concentration is him not tracking the ball or his man properly on Ricky Pearsall's pivotal 4th quarter catch in the Week 1 loss to the 49ers, or getting caught peaking into the backfield on playaction and not being able to recover in lapses did lead to Mike Macdonald preferring Josh Jobe as a starting outside corner over Woolen, who got plenty of playing time anyway in Macdonald's nickel and dime heavy was nevertheless his fewest snaps played to also was briefly benched for an offfield noncriminal disciplinary matter by Mike Macdonald in 2024.I'd also add that Riq is not the best, most physical tackler you'll ever see but he's gotten better in that area over the past season.5 What should we know about him off the field?I don't know how often he's streaming Brandon Brooks Jersey (https://www.philadelphiafootballshop.com/collections/brandon-brooks-jersey), but I know that Riq is a Twitch streamer and is otherwise fairly you're an Eagles fan on TwitterX just know that he's definitely he's not Kevin Durant levels of online to my 's take: I like the Woolen signing because it wasn't about Howie Roseman looking at a weak free agency class and trying to overpay someone simply because it was a position of need see: Adam Peters' approach this year for the Washington , the Eagles' stance seemed to be a similar to the approved NFL Draft strategy of focusing more on getting the best player available than prioritizing a certain Eagles did have a need at CB2, yes, but signing Woolen was about getting a strong talent at a relatively good him to Philly's secondary gives Vic Fangio the strongest starting corner trio in the the downside is real and could be frustrating at times, Woolen is likely to be a net positive as Mookie said he was in Eagles will get a year to determine if they want to or if they can afford to make him a longterm not, there's value in having him for a season before potentially letting him earn a big pay day next offseason and allowing the Eagles to collect a compensatory pick for him that they would receive in the 2028 NFL told, signing Woolen was good business and Eagles fans should be excited to see him play.
Philadelphia Eagles Team Apparel Jersey (https://www.philadelphiafootballshop.com)