PHILADELPHIA — No, he wasn’t built in a lab. But he certainly looks like he could have been the test subject of a science experiment that NFL teams would use to create the perfect cornerback — if that were a thing.
Eagles cornerback Kelee Ringo may never become a good NFL starter, but his athleticism won’t be the reason he fails.
Ringo’s combination of size (6-2, 207 pounds) and speed (4.36 40-yard dash) is elite for his position. So, once he masters his technique and football intelligence, the 22-year-old could turn into a star defensive player.
During training camp, Ringo will compete with Adoree’ Jackson, the former New York Giants cornerback, who is entering his ninth NFL season, for the No. 2 CB spot opposite second-year player Quinyon Mitchell.
Ringo should be the favorite to win the job since he offers more upside than Jackson.
“He’s a freak of nature,” Jackson told reporters Tuesday about Ringo. “Just his tangibles. Being that tall. Being able to have speed. His movement.”
The former Georgia star was projected to go in the first or second round of the 2023 NFL Draft, but he surprisingly fell to the fourth round, getting picked by the Eagles after they traded a 2024 third-round pick to the Houston Texas to move up for him.
In his first two seasons, Ringo has only started five games (four games in 2023 and one game in 2024), taking most of his snaps on special teams as one of the league’s best gunners.
During his limited defensive action, he had good moments in coverage and as a run defender, but he didn’t play well enough in those games to be considered a surefire starter in the future.
Last season, the Eagles didn’t make Ringo their top backup cornerback, choosing veteran Isaiah Rodgers instead. Ringo needs to show Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio this summer that he has made big improvements, making him ready for a starting role.
“The game is slowing down a lot more,” Ringo said Tuesday. “Just technique wise. (I’m focused) on the little things. … Understanding the playbook. Understanding what offenses are trying to do to you in the scheme and everything like that.
“When everything slows down for you, you’re able to play a lot faster. I’m kind of tapping into that, and it feels really good.”
Perhaps if Ringo stayed for another few seasons at Georgia, he would have been selected in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft. But he believes departing early for the NFL gave “him a head start” in his development, and he’s also confident that his best days are still ahead of him.
The lessons Ringo learned from Darius Slay, Avonte Maddox and James Bradberry — three former Eagles cornerbacks — over the last two years has helped him become a better pro.
“(Kelee) just needs reps,” Fangio said Tuesday. “He needs to learn to play the game, and that comes with reps. To quote what (Eagles coach) Nick (Sirianni) said in a meeting recently, ‘Repetition is the burden of leadership.’
“It’s up to us to get him enough reps in practice, expose him to all the things he needs to be exposed to so he can play a full NFL game. When I say full, not physically conditioning-wise, but be a competent corner throughout a full game in a full season.”
To have a better understanding of his assignments this season, Ringo has studied what the other Eagles defensive backs do on every play so he’s on the same page with them.
Eagles defensive backs coach Christian Parker, a fast-riser in coaching circles, has been instrumental to his growth, teaching him everything he needs to know.
“Specifically my feet. Being able to channel my weight, transition myself,” Ringo said about his technical improvements. “Of course, I’m one of the bigger guys on the outside. Just to be able to control my speed at the same time with weight. Be able to come out of transitions. Trust in that as well, man. Leverages. Things like that.”
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