Eagles All-22 Film Review: Justin Evans offers versatility
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By: Jonny Page
When watching Nick Morrow film and Terrell Edmunds film, I had some sort of idea of what to expect. I really had no idea what to expect before watching Justin Evans, as it’s not often you see a player come back to the NFL after missing 3 years. Evans only played 391 total snaps so this isn’t as detailed as some of my other breakdowns, but I hope you still get an idea of what type of player he is.
Statistics
The stats show that Evans is more of a hybrid slot cornerback/safety than an out-and-out safety. He doesn’t make a lot of tackles and he spends a lot of his time in the slot. C.J. Gardner-Johnson played in the slot more last year, but he did start there when Avonte Maddox was injured in Week 18, if you take away those games the time spent in the slot is pretty similar between both players, which is interesting when you consider that the Saints lost CGJ to the Eagles last offseason!
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Strengths
+ Very versatile. Can line up as a single-high safety, a split-field safety, and a slot cornerback. A jack of all trades, master of none.
What he brings over everything is versatility. You’ve seen him play a bit of everything and here he makes a really good play as the single-high safety after a late rotation from a split-field safety. He can do a little bit of everything on the back end. pic.twitter.com/W8dFAsMbYg
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) March 30, 2023
In the exact same game, just a few plays after rotating to a single-high safety, he does this in the box. My guess is Evans has a decent chance of sticking on the roster as he can do a number of jobs. Versatility is important, especially for backups. pic.twitter.com/TqNjoJDER7
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) March 30, 2023
+ He has the ability to line up in the slot and cover tight ends or running backs split out wide or average wide receivers. He looked better against smaller receivers in the games that I watched.
And in the same game you can see the ability to cover the slot. I think he has the ability to cover weak WR’s or some undersized split out TE types but I would not trust him on good WR’s. He’s more of a safety playing corner than a natural looking nickel corner. pic.twitter.com/hZWUKrRG32
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) March 30, 2023
+ He’s undersized and I expected him to struggle in the box (which is a big part of playing cornerback these days) but he handled it pretty well. He was good at avoiding contact and even fighting through contact on occasions.
Quick Justin Evans thread, he is number 30 in these clips. He’s more of a nickel CB/safety than just a safety. He sorta reminds me of a nowhere as good CGJ. Here you can see him avoid the block and make the tackle after coming down into the box. He doesn’t wrap up very well tho. pic.twitter.com/4sar7uTulL
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) March 30, 2023
I like this rep because he shows the courage to take on an offensive guard and does a great job avoiding contact before making a play on the ball carrier. He doesn’t shy away and give up on the play when he has a guard coming at him, which is important if you play in the box pic.twitter.com/g6fj1n8Grv
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) March 30, 2023
+ Has upside as this was his first year after missing three with an injury. He could certainly improve after a year of playing football again.
Weaknesses
– Doesn’t have the instincts of a starting cornerback. Looks lost in coverage at times and can be overaggressive.
He can be aggressive in coverage and can seem a bit lost. Pick plays like this are designed to beat man coverage so this is a tough cover, but he has to have the instincts to recognise the pick and not try and jump the route like he does. You can get beat but not like this. pic.twitter.com/Mmsv5GJNHT
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) March 30, 2023
– Looked a little awkward in his movement at times which isn’t too surprising considering he missed 3 whole years with an injury.
I wasn’t too impressed with his movement skills at times. He looked a little awkward moving when dropping into coverage and accelerating forward. He takes a poor angle here and just looks a little awkward in his movement. Maybe I’m harsh here but I noticed it a few times. pic.twitter.com/5yccVfQtgB
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) March 30, 2023
– If he lines up as your slot cornerback, you are going to have to hope he doesn’t come up against any top wide receivers. He had absolutely no chance of staying with DeAndre Hopkins last season.
Not sure what the Saints defensive staff were doing, but the Cardinals kept getting Hopkins matched up on Evans and it was brutal. I’m not even blaming him because it’s a horrible matchup but it highlights he’s more of a backup than starter imo. pic.twitter.com/uRJrLxOvSv
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) March 30, 2023
If you are a slot defender, you have to accept you can end up outside if the WRs switch. I didn’t see Evans as good enough to handle this. This is an insane route by Hopkins fair enough, but Evans doesn’t get close to him. pic.twitter.com/99pMQxzxKo
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) March 30, 2023
– Isn’t particularly aggressive in run defense. He will make the tackle but can be slow to the hole.
This rep summed up his play in the box to me. He makes the tackle and plays it well. But he’s not aggressive coming downhill, he’s quite passive as he waits for the RB to get to him. He’s not going to wow anyone with TFL’s or aggressive downhill run defense. pic.twitter.com/kJOpbZoseG
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) March 30, 2023
– His missed tackle % is high because he doesn’t wrap up well and took some awful angles in the open field last year.
He had a high missed tackle % last year and you can see why on reps like this. He doesn’t wrap up well and takes some pretty terrible angles as I’ve mentioned earlier. This is the kind of play you don’t want to see on film very often. This should be a checkdown for minimal gain pic.twitter.com/j7oY7B5RE1
— Jonny Page (@JonnyPage9) March 30, 2023
Overall
I like the Justin Evans signing as a low-risk move, even if I am by no means convinced by the player. I am not sure he is very good, and I don’t think he should be starting for the Eagles. However, I think stylistically and positionally, he is pretty similar to CGJ. He is more of a safety than a cornerback in my opinion, but he can give you snaps at both positions if needed.
When it comes to a backup signing, I think versatility is one of the most important things I want to see. Justin Evans is likely not good enough to ever be a starter, and he may not even make the roster, but I imagine he has a good chance of sticking around because he can give you snaps as a single-high safety, split-field safety, and a slot cornerback. If he can contribute on special teams, I think there’s a chance he’s the Eagles’ 3rd or 4th safety if they don’t add anyone else this offseason. As last year was his first year playing football in 3 years, there is some upside with this signing too. It’s worth a shot!
Originally posted on Bleeding Green Nation
