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4 Philadelphia Eagles moves Howie Roseman should be applauded for


time2rock
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4 Philadelphia Eagles moves Howie Roseman should be applauded for

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Give Howie Roseman a round of applause if you’re a Philadelphia Eagles fan.

When the Philadelphia Eagles walked off the field in Week 17, deliberately throwing the game in order to improve draft position, the perception of this team and the front office couldn’t have been worse.

Entering the offseason with all the dysfunctional issues that they had, the trajectory of this team certainly felt like it was going in the wrong direction. Their $100-million franchise quarterback had been benched. There were questions about Doug Pederson and his staff, and this roster for the third straight season could not stay healthy.

Oh, and that’s not all. Philadelphia’s salary cap issues that they carried into the offseason hurt as well. Before any moves were made, the Eagles were forced to shed over $50 million in salary. The outlook was not positive, and the fanbase once again turned on the executive vice president and general manager Howie Roseman.

To his credit, Howie has turned things around, and even though most will never give him credit, his performance during 2020’s offseason is one that would normally get a general manager some praise.

Now, while there are still some that want to see him fired, the majority of fans watching understand what he did this offseason. The atmosphere around this team has gone from bleak to a trajectory that is trending upward. Once considered a top general manager after winning the Super Bowl back in 2017, this may be his greatest work.

Here are four moves that may have thrust him back into respectability.

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The Philadelphia Eagles trade Carson Wentz.

The biggest move of the Eagles offseason was when they traded fifth-year quarterback Carson Wentz to the Indianapolis Colts in exchange for a 2021 third-round selection and a conditional 2nd-round selection in 2022 that has the potential to become a first-round pick if Wentz plays at least 75 percent of the Colts offensive snaps. Normally the team trading away a franchise quarterback is considered the proverbial loser of the trade. The Eagles benefit in many ways from trading Carson Wentz.

Heading into what Roseman called a ‘transition period’, having draft capital is essential. Depending on how the 2021 season shakes out for Wentz and the Colts, the Eagles could be looking at three first-round draft picks in the 2022 NFL Draft. Worst case scenario would be two first-round picks and two second-round picks. Gaining draft picks isn’t the only benefit of trading Carson Wentz.

Any time you can reset your cap situation after being in the hole the way the Eagles were, it’s a great thing. Building a championship contender in today’s NFL is hard, especially when franchise quarterbacks want, but rightfully deserve contracts that eat up over a quarter of the team’s annual cap space.

By trading Wentz, the Eagles incurred the largest dead cap hit in NFL history, a whopping $34 million hit to their 2021 cap space. But after this season the contract comes off the books and the Eagles will have a lot of money to work with when it comes to rebuilding this team into a contender.

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The Philadelphia Eagles make major moves in free agency.

Going into the NFL’s free agency period, the Philadelphia Eagles did not have much cap space to work with. Many thought they wouldn’t be able to sign any free agents. Howie Roseman made lemonade out of lemons.

Restructuring contracts is now common practice across the league, but Howie Roseman pioneered it years ago. Depending on who you ask, restructuring contracts is either a good thing or a bad thing. GMs can create cap space by ‘kicking the can down the road’ so to speak. Roseman did what he had to by restructuring a handful of veteran contracts like the ones belonging to Darius Slay, Rodney McLeod, and Brandon Graham.

No one expected the Eagles to be big buyers in the free-agent market. They were never going to be able to sign a top-tier guy. Howie Roseman went after players who were great value pickups. He signed guys like Anthony Harris to a one-year $4M deal, a man who was the top safety on the market and commanding big money a year ago. He also signed Eric Wilson to a team-friendly one-year deal after having his best season as a pro in Minnesota.

Two of Howie’s best signings did not come in the thick of free agency. The signing of Ryan Kerrigan, which was a surprise to many, did not happen until mid-May. The final piece, and depending on who you ask, his best signing came just days before training camp kicked off by signing cornerback Steven Nelson to a one-year $4 million deal.

Based on what he came into the offseason with cap-wise, and the value he was able to get with the scraps he had, deserves a lot of credit. Howie made sure that even during a ‘transition period’ there would be no tanking. This team will continue to compete.

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The Philadelphia Eagles land big fish in the NFL Draft.

An article praising Howie for drafting seems unusual, but here we are. Often criticized for the moves made in previous drafts, Roseman knocked this one out of the park.

Many fans were upset when the news of the Eagles trading down broke. All offseason, Eagles fans have been celebrating the fact that they could secure either LSU wide receiver Ja’marr Chase or Florida tight end Kyle Pitts. Trading down to 12 ruled both of them out.

Roseman had a plan though. Devonta Smith graded very similar to Ja’marr Chase and that is why trading down made even more sense. He felt he could get a blue-chip player while securing another first-round pick.

Roseman did not disappoint in the rest of the draft either. Taking interior offensive lineman Landon Dickerson with the 37th overall pick in the second round. He’s someone Philly is banking on to stay healthy and anchor this offensive line after Jason Kelce retires.

Defensive tackle Milton Williams was added out of Louisiana Tech, someone who’s being compared to Aaron Donald. Cornerback Zech McPhearson was added in the fourth round. Running back Kenny Gainwell was added in the fifth. Both of these picks drew rave reviews from draft experts and Eagles fans. Cornerback was still a need at the time and McPhearson has the talent to play early and develop into a solid player. Getting a player like Kenny Gainwell in the fifth round was just flat-out impressive. Miles Sanders needs help in the backfield and the Eagles need a young dynamic back in case of injury.

This draft cannot be judged for another few years, but Howie deserves an A for the moves he was able to make and the value of each draft pick.

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The Philadelphia Eagles land an unappreciated but very talented coaching staff.

After Super Bowl-winning head coach Doug Pederson was fired the search for the next head coach started. And like the search back in 2016 where Pederson was eventually hired, the Eagles held several interviews. There were many reports the Eagles were not a hot destination for a lot of the new head coaching candidates. Similar to Pederson, when Nick Sirianni was hired, he was criticized.

It’s almost like Howie and Jeff were trying to recreate the hire of Pederson because there are too many parallels. Sirianni does not have much experience with play-calling but will assume that role with the Eagles. Pederson and Sirianni are also first-time head coaches. They are both branches off coaching trees of previous Eagles coaches. Pederson from Andy Reid and Sirianni from Frank Reich. Finally, they were both considered ‘yes men’ that the front office could control and many pundits did not believe either could command a locker room.

The beginning of the Sirianni era got off to a rough start. His introductory presser was widely mocked and continued the narrative that he wasn’t fit to be an NFL head coach.

Throughout the offseason, Sirianni demonstrated on many occasions that not only can he gain the respect of his players, but that his football IQ is not to be underestimated. He filled out a wonderful staff that consists of former LA Chargers offensive coordinator Shane Steichen (who will assume the same role in Philly), Florida QB coach Brian Johnson, and former Indianapolis Colts secondary coach as his defensive coordinator.

The knock on the previous staff was that they did not adapt well and failed to develop talent. This staff is the direct contrast, Howie Roseman got it right with the hire of Nick Sirianni and his staff.

https://insidetheiggles.com/2021/08/02/philadelphia-eagles-moves-howie-roseman/

 

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2 hours ago, time2rock said:

Defensive tackle Milton Williams was added out of Louisiana Tech, someone who’s being compared to Aaron Donald.

This line got a chuckle out of me. Just casually comparing our third rounder from an unheralded college team to a perennial all-pro first ballot Hall of Famer. :lol: 

2 hours ago, time2rock said:

This one should go over like a fart in church.  :lol:

 

I'm not sure I can ever fully forgive Roseman for coming away with Reagor and JJAW when we could've had Jefferson and Metcalf, but this has been a really good offseason for him. Just acquiring early picks next year, manipulating the cap enough that we could land a few solid pieces in free agency, and coming away with a solid-looking draft is about all you can ask for. 

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When the win the division and go to the playoffs will Howie get any Credit? 

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7 hours ago, time2rock said:
 

It’s almost like Howie and Jeff were trying to recreate the hire of Pederson because there are too many parallels.

The beginning of the Sirianni era got off to a rough start. His introductory presser was widely mocked and continued the narrative that he wasn’t fit to be an NFL head coach.

 

Eerily similar . . .

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