The Eagles have signed free-agent safety Caden Sterns, the team announced. Philadelphia cut linebacker Shaquille Quarterman in a corresponding move.
It has been a busy week for Sterns, who was waived by the Broncos on Aug. 5, claimed by the Panthers on Aug. 6 and subsequently put back on the waiver wire when he failed a physical with Carolina. He cleared waivers and was free to sign with any club, and as many expected, he chose the Eagles as his new employer.
Denver’s former fifth-round pick has shown potential when on the field, particularly during his rookie campaign in 2021. Sterns totaled a pair of interceptions and five pass deflections that season, and while he nearly matched both of those figures the following year, he played in just five games due to a hip ailment.
Availability remained an issue for Sterns in 2023, as he suffered a torn patellar tendon in the regular-season opener and was shelved for the rest of the year.
Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio was Sterns’ head coach in Denver in 2021, and when speaking to reporters immediately after Sunday’s acquisition, Fangio praised the 24-year-old DB’s instincts (via Eliot Shorr-Parks of 94WIP.com). Fangio added, however, that Sterns will not practice for a week or so as he continues to recover from last year’s injury.
Nonetheless, Shorr-Parks believes Sterns has a real chance of making the roster because, in his estimation, Philadelphia would not have signed a player who is not yet ready to practice if the club did not think highly of that player and had a real vision for his fit on the team.
Additionally, the Eagles need safety depth since C.J. Gardner-Johnson and Mekhi Garner are dealing with their injury problems while Sydney Brown is on the PUP list and James Bradberry is still learning the position after transitioning from cornerback (though Fangio said Bradberry is doing “pretty d— good” in that transition).
Quarterman, meanwhile, signed with Philadelphia just last week to crack the team’s LB rotation and to serve as a key special teams contributor after spending most of his first four years in the league as a third-phase stalwart for the Jaguars. He will now need to seek an opportunity elsewhere.
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