LeBlanc is next man up in secondary

PHILADELPHIA >> Cre’Von LeBlanc hasn’t been with the Eagles long enough to unpack his bags, much less fill a highlights reel.

But LeBlanc had a lot to be proud of during a twoyear tour with the Chicago Bears.

In LeBlanc’s rookie season, his pick-six of Matthew Stafford gave the Bears a late lead over the Detroit Lions, who rallied for the victory. He also broke up a couple of passes intended for Golden Tate, now his teammate.

Last season, LeBlanc ran down and stripped Eagles running back Jay Ajayi inside the five-yard line of the Bears, although the Birds recovered the ball in the end zone for a score and eventually won in a blowout. He also broke up a pass for Nelson Agholor in the contest.

LeBlanc wasn’t awful, the Bears were, and it cost John Fox his job.

New Bears coach Matt Nagy appreciated the work ethic of LeBlanc, who helped nickname him “Swaggy Nagy.” But LeBlanc was the odd man out when the Bears traded for Khalil Mack. They already had invested in first round cornerbacks Kyle Fuller and Prince Amukamara.

The Lions claimed LeBlanc, then released him. The Eagles are his third team this season.

“It’s a rocky road,” said LeBlanc, the undrafted product of Florida Atlantic who originally signed with New England. “That’s part of the business. You can’t hang your head. You’ve just got to believe, have faith. You can’t harp on the past for long. When you have that new opportunity with your new team you’ve just got to take it and run with it.”

LeBlanc (5-11, 190 pounds) gets another opportunity to prove what he can do Sunday when the Eagles oppose the New York Giants at Lincoln Financial Field (1 p.m., Fox).

Defensive backs Sidney Jones (hamstring), Avonte Maddox (knee, ankle) and Jalen Mills (foot) are out. LeBlanc, De’Vante Bausby and Chandon Sullivan will replace them, out of necessity.

“I know they are young but it’s a great opportunity for them,” Eagles head coach Doug Pederson said. “We always talk about the next man, and they’re the next men. They worked extremely hard this week in practice so far. It will be another great opportunity for all three of those guys really to kind of step up, really help the defense against an offense right now that’s playing well.”

At some point, LeBlanc will find himself with a familiar task: Defending Odell Beckham, Jr. The competition doesn’t get much better that.