Ed Reynolds Shows Up Big in 1st Philadelphia Eagles Preseason Game

As far as rookie seasons are concerned, Ed Reynolds’ couldn’t have been much more disastrous for the Philadelphia Eagles. In fact, he essentially didn’t have one—and never will.

Reynolds spent the entirety of the 2014 NFL season on the Eagles practice squad, so while the safety is still considered a “first-year player,” he is no longer designated as a rookie. There are certainly worse fates for young professional athletes, such as being out of a job completely, yet for a fifth-round draft pick, in particular, such treatment is highly irregular.

Needless to say, Reynolds’ prospects didn’t seem too good entering training camp this summer. But as the old saying goes, that’s why they play the games.

Reynolds did more for his NFL career in one day than he had since joining the Eagles last May, intercepting two passes in Philadelphia’s 36-10 victory over the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday. On the first pick, Reynolds was in single-high zone coverage, read a deep post route and beat the intended receiver to the spot. Later on, he showed excellent instincts, jumping in front of the target on a throw that might have been a tad late.

YR	TKL	PD	INT	TD
2010	6	0	0	0
2012	47	9	6	3
2013	87	4	1	0

Granted, these plays came at the expense of undrafted rookie quarterback Bryan Bennett—against the third-string offense and a collection of camp bodies in the fourth quarter of a meaningless exhibition game.

Regardless, it was more than Reynolds contributed last summer.

That wasn't all Reynolds did either. He recorded three pass breakups on the afternoon. He provided generally sound coverage throughout the contest. Reynolds even made a tackle on special teams, which caught the attention of Eagles head coach Chip Kelly.

“I thought he showed up today,” Kelly said of Reynolds’ performance, per PhiladelphiaEagles.com. “He showed up, not only two interceptions, but had a big tackle on the kickoff return after that late in the game. I think he's a guy that's pushing to make the 53‑man roster, and I'm happy for him right now."

The good news for Reynolds is that the Eagles have questionable depth behind Malcolm Jenkins and Walter Thurmond at safety. However, if he has designs on making the squad, his ability to play on special teams will be crucial, and on Sunday, he filled a number of different roles in that phase.

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“We put a big emphasis on how you play in the game,” Kelly continued. “It's not just our training sessions. It's how do you play when it's live, full go and let's go, and I thought Ed did a nice job and put himself in a pretty good situation coming out of Game 1. We'll see how he grows from here."

As is often the case these days, there was a rush to write Reynolds off after 2014—this time, I was as guilty as anybody. Hey, history hasn’t been kind to many fifth-round picks who spent their rookie years on the scout team.

Then again, Reynolds did have the built-in excuse of missing many of the Eagles’ OTAs. Archaic NFL rules prevented him from joining the team until after his Stanford graduation, which wasn’t until June. By the time he returned to Philly, the Eagles were already deep into their offseason program. Injuries also hindered the 6’1”, 207-pound safety leading up to the season.

That might not be enough to keep a first- or second-round pick out of sight, out of mind for a full season. But for Reynolds—at the cerebral safety position, no less—these were monumental setbacks.

Against the Colts, we caught a glimpse of the potential the Eagles saw on draft day. Reynolds gained a reputation for being a ball hawk during his junior season at Stanford, intercepting six passes, three of which he returned for touchdowns—tied for the most in the nation in 2012.

Height	Weight	Arm Length	40-Yard Dash	Bench Press	Vertical Jump
6'1"	207 lbs	30 ¾"	4.57 seconds	15 reps	32.5 inches

So what’s been the biggest difference? More than likely, it’s hard work and experience.

“Ed has had a really nice camp,” Kelly said. “He's a lot like [linebacker] Marcus [Smith] in Year 2. It's not all new for him. He spent the entire offseason here, was here every day. We weren't allowed to be with him until April 20, but he was in the building working on his own, and I think it's showing right now."

After Jenkins and Thurmond, the backup safety jobs are up for grabs. Yet up until now, Reynolds somehow felt like an extreme long shot to make the team. It’s been only one game, though, and he must prove it was no fluke. That being said, there’s no denying this was a huge leap forward for Reynolds, and everybody else vying for one of those spots is suddenly playing catch-up.