Report: Eagles contending to sign A.J. Bouye

By: Jesse Larch, Sports Talk Philly Staff

Following a report that listed the Eagles as a team pursuing Houston Texans cornerback A.J. Bouye at the beginning of the legal tampering period, Ed Werder of ESPN reports that the Eagles have emerged as a viable landing spot for the 25-year-old cornerback:

#Texans concerned about prospect of losing CB AJ Bouye to #Eagles, per source. #Texans to counter offer today

— Ed Werder (@Edwerderespn) March 8, 2017

Bouye has publicly stated that he wants to return to Houston, but Werder's report suggests that the Eagles have impressed Bouye with an offer that has the Texans questioning their ability to retain Bouye's services. 

The Eagles have released Leodis McKelvin and do not appear to be interested in resigning Nolan Carroll, leaving Jalen Mills as the only returning starter at the position. 

Cornerback play was a regular problem for the Eagles last season, and Bouye is widely considered the best coverage cornerback in the free agent class, being named one of the top ten breakout players of last season by Pro Football Focus.

The Eagles have not had success with finding cornerbacks in free agency or the draft in recent years, and Bouye would come with risk, seeing time as a starter for the first time last season due to injuries piling up in the Houston secondary. Bouye did take advantage of his opportunity, allowing 54.5% of targets to be caught and surrendered an average of 9.8 yards per catch to go with 63 tackles, one interception, and 11 pass breakups.

Bouye fits exactly what Howie Roseman said that he wanted to add to the roster in his end-of-season press conference, when he emphasized adding players who are young and can grow with Carson Wentz into the team's next era, and not players who would be "band-aids."