PHILADELPHIA – Eagles safety Reed Blankenship stood by his locker in Lincoln Financial Field, having just played the most defensive snaps in his young career. In fact, Blankenship had not registered anything to his stat line besides playing two defensive snaps in the previous four games.
Blankenship, an undrafted free agent who came out of Middle Tennessee State, filled in for an injured C.J. Gardner-Johnson, who left the game with a rib injury, and suddenly found himself on the same field as Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
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Blankenship, with his southern accent coming out while he talked, smiled as he detailed his night, one that ended with him intercepting Rodgers, finishing tied for the team lead in tackles with six, and cornerbacks Darius Slay and James Bradberry chanting “Reed, Reed, Reed” after the game, which ended with the Eagles defeating the Packers, 40-33. Blankenship garnered one of the two interceptions that the Eagles got off of Rodgers.
Blankenship was just one of the young defensive backs who filled in for a starter to step up big defensively, helping to limit the Packers to 236 passing yards. Blankenship said he was happy that he could step in for Gardner-Johnson and help contribute in the way he did, especially with Sunday’s game being the fifth that he had suited up to play this season.
“It’s great,” Blankenship said. “Going into this game, I didn’t know that I would be able to go in there and do what I was supposed to do. I knew my name would get called eventually because it is a long season, but I was prepared for it and went in confident. I have guys in the room that are mature, and I just learned from them every day.”
Blankenship’s interception came at a moment that could have turned the momentum around completely because the Packers were driving into Eagles territory, looking to put points up on the board before Blankenship’s interception. Blankenship described what happened that led to his big interception, a pass intended for Packers tight end Robert Tonyan.
“I was cross-keying, and I saw Aaron Rodgers looking that way, and I broke on it,” Blankenship said. “I’m surprised he actually threw it. That surprised me a bit, but I’m happy I got there in time.”
Blankenship’s performance did not surprise Bradberry because he saw how Blankenship takes the time to prepare for each opponent.
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“I think it’s really tough, but that is the type of player he is and the type of guy he is,” Bradberry said. “He puts in the work week in and week out. He was ready when his name was called.”
His defensive backfield mate, safety Marcus Epps, also saw how effective Blankenship was. It can be challenging for a safety to come in and be on the same page with everyone in the secondary, but Epps said Blankenship stepped right in without the defense missing a beat.
“There could be some challenges, but Reed makes it pretty easy because I know he knows what to do and that he will be in the right spots, so I had trusted him that he’s going to be where he needs to be, and he was the whole night,” Epps said. “It was good to see that his preparation came to fruition on the field.”
Blankenship was not the only player to walk away with an interception. Cornerback Josiah Scott also grabbed one, taking a pass deflected by Slay, setting up the offense in good field position for a short drive that ended with a 15-yard Miles Sanders touchdown run.
Scott, who is filling in for Avonte Maddox, who is on injured reserve with a hamstring injury, said that he felt like he was feeling as if there was peer pressure in the secondary to get a takeaway, with several of his teammates already collecting interceptions.
“It felt good to get the monkey off my back and get that first interception,” Scott said. “They come in bunches, and I’m looking to get more. We want to keep it rolling. I feel like everybody in the secondary that’s played this year has interceptions, so we want to keep that rolling, make turnovers and make plays on the back end. We want to keep doing that.”
The Eagles having Scott and Blankenship step up is big for several reasons. The two have gotten valuable snaps they can use in the secondary. Their playing time also showcases the team’s depth in the secondary, allowing defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon to use several personnel packages and combinations if he wants to implement a game plan that can stop a specific opponent.
Both Maddox and Gardner-Johnson will be back at some point in the season, and if Blankenship and Scott continue to play as well as they have, the Eagles defense will be able to get by in their pursuit of the NFC East title and the top seed in the conference.
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Chris Franklin may be reached at cfranklin@njadvancemedia.com.
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