The 2024 Philadelphia Eagles had no shortage of recognition for their play on the field, whether that was Saquon Barkley running for over 2,000 yards, Zack Baun earning a Defensive Player of the Year nomination, Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean being finalists for Defensive Rookie of the Year, the offensive line just generally dominating, or Jalen Carter's ascendence to beast status.
Barkley, Baun, Carter, Lane Johnson, Jordan Mailata, Landon Dickerson, Cam Jurgens, and A.J. Brown all either made the Pro Bowl or received All-Pro nods, while others like Mitchell, DeJean, Josh Sweat, Jalen Hurts, Darius Slay, Rick Lovato, Braden Mann, Jake Elliott, Brandon Graham, and Kelee Ringo were named Pro Bowl alternates.
Lost in the shuffle, at least for their on-field performances, were the starting safeties, C.J. Gardner-Johnson and Reed Blankenship. Despite the lack of outside recognition, neither Gardner-Johnson nor Blankenship lack for confidence or love for each other.
"I'd say we're the best safety duo in the league, the way we play together how we talk and communicate, and keep the defense on the same page," Gardner-Johnson said.
"I agree," Blankenship said. "We mesh well together. We're friends on the field, friends off the field. If you don't really like the person you're working with, it's not going to work at all."
Both Gardner-Johnson and Blankenship were undervalued coming out of college. Gardner-Johnson was at one time considered a first- or second-round prospect, but he didn't get picked until the third day of the draft.
"I dropped from the first to the fourth after my interviews," Gardner-Johnson said.
He was one of the Eagles' 30 official pre-draft visits, which included a trip to a well-known local restaurant chain.
"The Eagles didn't draft me because I was trying to holler at a chick at Chickie's and Pete's," Gardner-Johnson revealed while laughing. "That got back to Howie, and then my agent asked me, 'You were trying to get some girl during your visit?'"
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Blankenship went undrafted after five strong seasons at a small college program at Middle Tennessee State.
"You want as a player to be drafted," Blankenship said. "You want to be, you know, the talk of the town. But the older I get, the more I realize, like, it doesn't matter. There are a lot of undrafted players that are stars that have been playing for years. It's all about having that chip on your shoulder.
"You put all the work in, in college, you think you're going to get drafted, and you don't. Then you have to go to mini-camp and you have to start all over again. You go from the top dog in college to the bottom of the pile. It seems like it's always been that, ever since high school.
"You can get tired of doing that. It's like, 'Why is nobody paying attention to me?' You can put the 'Woe is me' to the side and either put the work in, or not and go home."
Gardner-Johnson finished with six interceptions in 2024, tied for third-most in the NFL. Blankenship had four INTs, tied for 10th-most. But beyond the big plays, their teammates and coaches recognize their more subtle contributions to the defense.
"I've got endless confidence in those guys," safeties coach Joe Kasper said. "And I agree — I think they're the best safety tandem in the NFL. Defensively, we've been fortunate to have a great deal of success, and they're a big reason why."
"They present differently, personality-wise, but opposites attract. Those two guys are such great friends. They're just so in sync with one another on the field and schematically, the way we do things, and that's a huge piece.
"They tackle so well. C.J. is obviously such an aggressive player. And Reed tackles like a linebacker, who is big and strong, he takes advantage of his strength."
"We're the No. 1 defense, the No. 1 pass defense," Darius Slay said. "They have the right to say they're the best."
Asked what he'll be doing if the Eagles win the Super Bowl, Gardner-Johnson said, "I'm gettin' drunk."
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