Jim Schwartz: Cre’Von LeBlanc May Have Been “The Key to Our Season”

Embed from Getty Images

By Paul Bowman, Sports Talk Philly Editor

It was a question about keeping the dangerous Tarik Cohen from being a huge factor in the wild card game against the Bears that changed the course of defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz’s press conference on Tuesday.

He heaped the praise on defensive leaders Malcolm Jenkins and Nigel Bradham for keeping him in check but mentioned that there was a third party who played a major role in that: Cre’Von LeBlanc. Schwartz explained that there were times they had to treat him as a receiver and LeBlanc was the one who drew the task.

The All-Pro Cohen managed just three catches for 27 yards against the Eagles. Schwartz just could not help himself from explaining just how much that meant to the team.

“I said before I don’t know where we’d be without Avonte, I don’t know where we’d be without Cre[‘Von].”

In his eight games with the birds, he went from being absolutely scorched play after play, to arguably our best corner just because of how little he has been targeted over the past few weeks. In just seven games, he has managed 24 tackles and a defensed pass from the slot (as well as the outside in the Giants game), including a massive break-up that would have put the Bears in position to score a touchdown just before the half in the wild card game.

Leblanc was a totally unknown entity to fans when he joined the team. He had appeared in 28 games for the Chicago Bears over the last two seasons after signing as an undrafted free-agent. He then appeared in just three games with the Detroit Lions in the first half of this season before being cut. He had registered 61 tackles (one for loss), a sack, two quarterback hits, 13 passes defended and two interceptions over his two and a half seasons in the league.

He was not just unknown to fans, as Schwartz shared with the media.

“That might have been the key to our season, you know, putting a waiver claim in on him – I’d never heard of Cre’Von LeBlanc before.”

Schwartz also mentioned that LeBlanc played hard against the Eagles last season and ran hard to force a fumble downfield.

While Schwartz said that he thought the play was against Alshon or maybe Agholor, you’d be hard pressed to find that fumble by either player. The play was actually made on Ajayi and it is one that Eagles fans likely remember. It was the fluke play where the fumble was picked up by Agholor in the end zone for a touchdown.

LeBlanc was wearing the number 22 in this game and comes from the other side of the field to nearly save a touchdown.

Just how we drew it up.#FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/boix3nZudz

— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) November 26, 2017

The play worked out for the Eagles, so LeBlanc’s near save went rather underappreciated, especially by Eagles fans.

His play has not gone underappreciated anymore. Fans, coaches and players are glad LeBlanc is with the Birds now because, as Jim Schwartz said, “We owe a lot of our season to that.”