Sydney Brown (American football)

Sydney Brown (born March 21, 2000) is a Canadian professional American football safety for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Illinois Fighting Illini.

Sydney Brown

Brown at the 2023 NFL Combine
No. 21 – Philadelphia Eagles
Position:	Safety
Personal information
Born:	(2000-03-21) March 21, 2000 (age 25) London, Ontario, Canada
Height:	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Weight:	211 lb (96 kg)
Career information
High school:	South Collegiate (London) Saint Stephen's (Bradenton, Florida, U.S.)
College:	Illinois (2018–2022)
NFL draft:	2023: 3rd round, 66th pick
Career history
Philadelphia Eagles (2023–present)
Roster status:	Active
Career highlights and awards
Super Bowl champion (LIX) First-team All-Big Ten (2022)
Career NFL statistics as of 2024
Total tackles: 49 Forced fumbles: 2 Pass deflections: 5 Interceptions: 2 Defensive touchdowns: 1 Stats at Pro Football Reference

Early life

Brown originally attended the London South Collegiate Institute in London, Ontario, Canada before transferring to Saint Stephen's Episcopal School in Bradenton, Florida in 2016, along with his twin brother, Chase Brown.^[1][2] Over his junior and senior seasons, he combined to have 132 tackles and three interceptions. He committed to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign to play college football.

College career

Brown (#30) with Illinois in 2022

As a true freshman at Illinois in 2018, Brown started all 10 games he played in and had 55 tackles and one interceptions. In 2019, his brother, Chase joined Illinois after a year at Western Michigan.^[3][4] That season, he started 10 of 11 games, recording 88 tackles, three interceptions and an interception returned for a touchdown. He started all six games in the Covid-19 shortened 2020 season, finishing with 36 tackles. In 2021, Brown started all 12 games, and had 81 tackles and one sack. He returned to Illinois for his senior year in 2022.^[5][6]

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables

Height	Weight	Arm length	Hand span	40-yard dash	10-yard split	20-yard split	Vertical jump	Broad jump	Bench press
5 ft 9+3⁄4 in (1.77 m)	211 lb (96 kg)	31+1⁄2 in (0.80 m)	10+1⁄4 in (0.26 m)	4.47 s	1.51 s	2.55 s	40.5 in (1.03 m)	10 ft 10 in (3.30 m)	23 reps
All values from the NFL Combine[7][8]

Brown was ranked the #3 Canadian prospect ahead of the 2023 CFL Draft, but ultimately went undrafted.^[9]

The Philadelphia Eagles selected Brown in the third round (66th overall) of the 2023 NFL draft.^[10] He notably became the last of five defensive backs drafted from the same Illinois' secondary spanning from 2018–2020. His fellow defensive backs from Illinois included Nate Hobbs (2021), Kerby Joseph (2022), Devon Witherspoon (2022), and Quan Martin (2023).^[11]

In Week 17 against the Arizona Cardinals, Brown recorded his first career interception and touchdown on the same play when he returned an interception 99 yards off a Kyler Murray pass.^[12] In Week 18 against the New York Giants, Brown tore his ACL, ending his season.^[13]

Brown at the White House following the Eagles' Super Bowl LIX victory

Brown began the 2024 season on the reserve/PUP list, and activated on October 19, 2024.^[14] Brown won a Super Bowl ring when the Eagles defeated the Kansas City Chiefs 40–22 in Super Bowl LIX.^[15]

NFL career statistics

Legend
	Led the league
Bold	Career high

Regular season

Year	Team	Games		Tackles				Interceptions						Fumbles
		GP	GS	Cmb	Solo	Ast	Sck	PD	Int	Yds	Avg	Lng	TD	FF	FR	Yds	TD
2023	PHI	14	6	45	32	13	0.0	3	1	99	99.0	99	1	1	0	0	0
Career		14	6	45	32	13	0.0	3	1	99	99.0	99	1	1	0	0	0

Personal life

Brown is the identical twin brother of Cincinnati Bengals running back Chase Brown. The two were teammates at Illinois.^[16]