Win or lose, Eagles rookie safety Sydney Brown is out to make the most of his moments

For Eagles rookie safety Sydney Brown, ringing in the new year felt a bit peculiar.

Last Sunday, Brown recorded the first interception of his young career in electric fashion with his 99-yard pick-6 off Arizona quarterback Kyler Murray. However, the Eagles lost the game, which resulted in Brown departing Lincoln Financial Field with mixed feelings.

When he arrived at his home, Brown needed to decompress. So, with just a handful of hours remaining until the New Year, Brown texted fellow safety Reed Blankenship and the two defensive backs arranged a late dinner.

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Before they met up that night, Brown FaceTimed his mother, Raechel, and his twin brother, Chase, a running back for the Cincinnati Bengals.

During his pick-6, Brown jetted down the home sideline, juked past multiple defenders, and cut inward as he raced past everyone on the field. Brown reached a top speed of 21.52 mph, according to Next Gen Stats, which is the highest speed reached by an Eagles ballcarrier this season. Brown also recorded the highest speed by an NFL defensive player.

It was an emotional call for everyone involved as the Brown family reflected on Sydney’s feat.

“I don’t think it’s nice to have a personal performance with a loss,” Brown said, “But my mom gets so choked up in those moments because she watches us work. She wants success just as much as us.”

By the end of the call, Brown made sure to lighten the mood with a heartfelt joke. With his defensive touchdown, Sydney now has the same amount of touchdowns as Chase (one each).

“I just wanted to [smack talk] with my brother,” Brown said. “We’ve got the same amount of touchdowns. I’m all caught up!”

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Jokes aside, the Eagles are hopeful the sequence that led to Brown’s interception served as a glimpse of the team’s future. One play earlier, fellow rookie defensive tackle Jalen Carter sacked Murray for a 4-yard loss, setting up third-and-7.

“It’s been awesome being Sydney’s teammate, man,” said Carter, the front-runner for the NFL’s Defensive Rookie of the Year award. “He’s a strong, hard-hitting safety. Definitely one of the hardest-hitting safeties I’ve ever played with. His pick happened right after I got the sack. So for that to happen, it’s like, man, this is part of the future … He made some moves, made them miss, we might have to put him at running back. It was just awesome.”

Brown, a third-round draft pick out of Illinois, has quickly developed his reputation as a sideline-to-sideline athlete who plays through the whistle. During his final year at Illinois, he led the Big Ten with six interceptions, and his athleticism score from the scouting combine topped all defensive back prospects in this year’s rookie class.

“Sydney is never going to hesitate,” said former Illinois defensive coordinator and current Purdue coach, Ryan Walters. “His confidence and athleticism is a scary pairing in terms of he is throwing himself toward the ball carrier [to bring] that guy down with maximum energy and effort. He plays with one speed, every single snap. There is no hesitation when it comes to Sydney Brown.”

His all-out effort can be rewarding, as the Eagles have experienced. Brown’s first career pass defense — from Week 3 versus the Tampa Bay Buccaneers — occurred during a play in which he successfully recovered and dove to smack the ball away from receiver Mike Evans, while saving a touchdown in the process.

His noted aggressiveness, though, can feel overbearing … at times, to a fault. Brown’s five missed tackles, according to Pro Football Focus, is third most among Eagles defensive backs.

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His teammates and coaches don’t appear too concerned.

“What I see him do on the field is very motivational, it just gets me going,” Carter said. “He might miss a tackle, but him coming down full speed gets me ready to make the next play, to make a big hit.”

Eagles defensive play caller Matt Patricia complimented Brown on his style of play.

“I think as you grow and especially in the league as you have more time on the field, you learn,” he said. “We want guys to be aggressive. [Brown] has a great style of play, but certainly we can’t do anything that puts the team at harm or risk. Those are good learning moments for everybody in that situation and just trying to get him to get that right tempo of the play for all of those things.”

A couple of hours before midnight on New Year’s Eve, Brown linked with Blankenship, and the duo reflected — and also looked ahead. The Eagles have one regular-season game remaining, on Sunday against the New York Giants, and then the playoffs arrive.

“He’s gritty, humble, just loves the game,” Blankenship said of Brown. “Seeing his growth throughout the year, knowing how athletic he is, and the plays he can make, I was so happy for him. I was screaming. I can only imagine how he felt. I know how I felt when I had my first pick [off quarterback Aaron Rodgers]. But to have a pick-six like that, [is] just incredible. He’s going to have a long career ahead of him.”

While Brown has provided flashes, the defense as a unit is still a lingering concern.

A portion of those uneasy feelings provides insight into why Brown wasn’t exactly ready to bask in his latest accomplishment.

“It’s always about what’s next, and how I can do it again,” he said. “That’s the biggest thing for me. I feel like I’m a guy that can do that over and over and over again. I’m living on the high of the next opportunity when I can make that play happen.

“The best is yet to come. This is a defense that we’ve got a couple [veterans] around us that we’re learning from. But when it’s our turn, I think there’s going to be a lot of playmakers for sure.”