Sydney Brown makes momentum-changing play for Philadelphia Eagles

Illinois football had four players selected in the 2023 NFL Draft, and one of those talented athletes was Sydney Brown.

In the third round, the Philadelphia Eagles selected the Illini standout safety. Brown was picked by one of the best teams in the NFL. The Eagles had just come off a Super Bowl loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, and they needed more help in the secondary.

On Monday night, the selection of Brown paid off. In what could easily have been a game-changing play, Brown recovered, made up ground, and deflected a touchdown reception by Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver, Mike Evans.

A pass deflection by Brown doesn’t come as a huge surprise, though. During his time at Illinois, Brown was all over the field defending passes. He had seven pass deflections in his final season in Champaign, and he had 16 pass deflections during his career.

If Brown doesn’t deflect that pass, Evans has an easy touchdown. This would have put the game at 7-3 in favor of the Buccaneers with a little over eight minutes to go in the first half. Momentum could have been changed with that touchdown. Instead, the Eagles go on to force a field goal and end up winning the game 25-11.

Sydney Brown is dealing with some leg issues that forced him to leave the game on Monday night

Brown made his impact felt on Monday night, but it came at a cost. He had to leave the game early due to issues with his thigh.

Injuries haven’t hampered Brown much during his football career. At Illinois, he started in 50 games, which included every contest during his final two years with the program.

I wouldn’t worry too much about Brown and lingering injury issues. This will hopefully be something he can work through during the weeks ahead so he can continue making an impact on the Eagles this season.