The Philadelphia Eagles already had arguably the NFL’s best 1-2 secondary punch in NFL All-Pro cornerback Quinyon Mitchell and NFL All-Pro slot cornerback Cooper DeJean.
What the Eagles have now, after signing 6-foot-4, 210-pound cornerback Riq Woolen away from the Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks, might be an entirely different monster.
ESPN’s Bill Barnwell called signing Woolen to a 1-year, $12 million free-agent contract the NFL’s “Best Offseason Move” just 2 months from the start of training camp.
“Bringing in Woolen upgrades the Eagles at two spots,” Barnwell wrote. “In their nickel subpackage, Woolen’s size and ability to disrupt routes should appeal to Fangio. The former Seahawks corner has allowed a passer rating under 80 in each of his first four seasons as a pro. He’ll also play on the outside when the Eagles are in their base defense, allowing DeJean to move to safety in four-DB sets, which will help the Eagles cover for the departed Reed Blankenship.”
Outside CB Eagles’ Weakest Link on Defense in 2025
While the Eagles’ offense never even threatened to achieve the same levels as their Super Bowl-winning campaign in 2024, we can’t say the same for the defense.
Led by venerated defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, the Eagles continued to improve over the season. They looked like 1 of the NFL’s elite units again by the end of the year — save for the outside cornerback spot opposite Mitchell. That’s where the Eagles tried to fill the role with veterans Adoree Jackson and Kelee Ringo at different times, and with little success.
Jackson’s play was especially heinous in 14 games with 10 starts, where he was targeted on 20 percent of passing plays, and his 56.4 overall grade from Pro Football Focus ranked him 89th out of 114 eligible NFL cornerbacks.
Riq Woolen’s Stock Dropped Despite Super Bowl Win
After helping lead the Seahawks to the 2nd Super Bowl win in franchise history in 2025, Woolen thought he was looking at a much more robust free agency market.
The bigger story ended up being what happened to drive down the price for Woolen, who ran the 40-yard dash in 4.26 seconds at the 2022 NFL scouting combine — the fastest time ever recorded for a player taller than 6 feet.
“Woolen’s market did not materialize as I had expected,” The Athletic’s Daniel Popper wrote. ” … The Eagles add another valuable piece to Vic Fangio’s secondary, and Woolen is in line to test free agency again in 2027.”
Critical Mistake May Have Scared Teams Off
While it’s hard to point to any 1 on-field incident as the reason any player may not have landed the payday they expected, there is a chance it happened in this case.
Leading the Los Angeles Rams 31-20 with 2:31 left in the 3rd quarter of the NFC Championship Game, the Seahawks got a stop on 3rd & 2 and were ready to get the ball back … until Woolen got called for taunting the Rams sideline after the play.
A few plays later, Woolen gave up a touchdown pass to NFL All-Pro wide receiver Puka Nacua and, boom, it’s a game again.
While the Seahawks won the game and eventually won the Super Bowl, Woolen has found the moment hard to shake off. His less-than-thoughtful apology didn’t help.
“No cap high intense game and when you in the zone and ballin with your bros sometimes you black out,” Woolen wrote on X following the game.
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