Eagles' potential 2026 target fills position of need (but is he the answer?)

The Philadelphia Eagles are trying to get through the 2025 season with another Super Bowl, but it's never too early to look ahead in the 2026 free agency for help.

Bleacher Report writer Alex Ballentine took a look at potential 2026 free agent fits for each team. Ballentine likes the Eagles to go after current Cincinnati Bengals safety Geno Stone to fill a need.

"Safety is a long-term need for the Eagles because Cooper DeJean is primarily going to serve as a slot defender and Reed Blankenship is headed toward free agency. If someone wants to pay a premium because of his experience in the Eagles defense, then Philly might be looking to move on and replace him with another veteran.

If that's the case, then Geno Stone would be worth keeping an eye on. His penchant for finding interceptions would work well as a deep safety who could pair with Sydney Jones.

The Bengals moving on from Lou Anarumo could have them looking to go younger at the position."

Can Stone truly help the Eagles out in 2026?

All of this is contingent on the fact that Sydney Brown or rookie second-round pick Andrew Mukuba don't play up to the standards that C.J. Gardner-Johnson did last year. Depth at safety wouldn't be the worst idea for Eagles general manager Howie Roseman.

Stone was originally a seventh-round pick of the Baltimore Ravens in 2020, where he spent the first four seasons of his career before joining the Bengals last year. He has been great in the previous two years in pass coverage, with 17 pass deflections and 12 interceptions.

Last season, Stone had a career-high 81 tackles and four quarterback hits in 17 games. His Pro Football Grade was not high, though, as they gave him an overall grade of 53.1, ranking 136th out of 171 safeties in the NFL.

The Eagles hope to strike a deal with Blankenship, as he is the quarterback of the defense and the new leader of the unit this year. There are questions as to whether Brown or Mukuba can step up in 2025 and take over the other starting safety position.

If Brown or Mukuba can be those guys, depth isn't going to be a problem for the Eagles. Stone has been a playmaker similar to Gardner-Johnson and would be 27 years old by the time free agency starts next March.

Roseman might not be thinking that far ahead, as he'll need to see how the regular season goes before making any kind of decisions in 2026. Could Stone help the Eagles? From a depth perspective, yes, but would he start? That's a whole other question.