Sydney Brown, a Canadian defensive back, has joined his twin brother in the ranks of NFL touchdown scorers, returning an interception 99 yards to the house for his first career touchdown with the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday.
Early in the second quarter of his team’s Week 17 game, the native of London, Ontario, went underneath a deep pass from Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray and snagged the ball cleanly at the one-yard line. He displayed his quickness down the right sideline before cutting back inside through a swarm of offensive players to score. The play put Philadelphia up 14-3.
Philadelphia eventually lost the game 35-31. Brown ended with five tackles, a pass breakup, and an interception.
Three weeks ago, Brown’s identical twin brother, Cincinnati Bengals running back Chase Brown, scored his first NFL touchdown against the Indianapolis Colts. On the 54-yard touchdown, the 23-year-old rookie was measured at 22.05 miles per hour, the second-fastest speed recorded by an NFL player to that point in the season.
Brown was chosen by the Eagles with the 66th overall choice in the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft, two rounds ahead of his football-carrying brother. He has played in 12 games and made five starts at safety after suffering a hamstring injury early in the season. He has 40 total tackles and a forced fumble.
Brown, a five-year starter at the University of Illinois, has 319 total tackles, 10 tackles for loss, two sacks, four forced fumbles, 26 pass breakups, 10 interceptions, and three defensive touchdowns in 51 career games. He was a three-time All-Big Ten selection in college and was selected a USA Today second-team All-American in his last season.
The five-foot-10, 211-pound defender blasted up the 2023 NFL Combine, running a 4.47-second forty-yard dash with a 1.51-second ten-yard split – the fourth-fastest run by a safety that year. Brown finished second and third in the position group with a 10-foot-10-inch broad jump and a 40.5-inch vertical. He also completed 23 bench reps.
Brown is anticipated to play a key role in the Eagles’ defense as they prepare for the playoffs. Philadelphia is currently 11-5 and still has a chance to win the NFC East title. The 2023 regular season is set to conclude on Sunday, January 7 against the New York Giants (5-11).
