Howie Roseman on why Eagles bringing back older veterans made sense
It was just a few days after the 2019 season, and Howie Roseman was taking stock of an aging roster that was largely made up of Super Bowl holdovers.
He spoke openly and honestly about how he regretted running it back with the 2017 roster instead of moving forward with younger players. The Eagles were still good enough to reach the playoffs in 2018 and 2019, but they were trending in the wrong direction, and it all crashed to Earth during the disastrous 2020 season.
Heres what Roseman said in January of 2021:
I think what we saw (after the 2017 season) was we had an opportunity with having the only (coaching) staff (in the division) that was coming back to maybe make more of a run with veteran players than we were planning if we had an offseason program, if we had OTAs, and giving those guys the opportunities, he said, referring to COVID wiping out the offseason.
Now, there are a lot of rookies who played really well this year and again not making that as an excuse. But when we had some opportunities after the draft to kind of change this team, I think we went with some veteran players, and I think we did that because it was more short-term thinking.
And weve put a lot of resources into this team in terms of money and free agents and trading draft picks, and that doesnt mean were not trying to win, but theres a time you have to pivot and understand what youve been doing and make sure that youre also taking care of the future of the team.
I know, for me personally, one of my weaknesses is getting attached to our players. Theres no doubt about it.
Fast forward two years.
In the past two weeks, the Eagles have brought back Jason Kelce, Fletcher Cox, Brandon Graham, Darius Slay and James Bradberry. When the season starts in September, Kelce and Graham will be 35, Cox and Slay will be 32 and Bradberry 30.
On the outside, you could draw the conclusion that Roseman went against his better judgment again, running it back with an older roster.
But not only did he say Monday at the NFL league meetings in Phoenix thats not the case, he said it really wasnt an issue on the heels of the 2017 season either.
First of all, we did go to the playoffs (in 2018 and 2019), win the division (in 2019), so it wasnt like we were a total bleepshow, he told reporters at the Biltmore. Maybe (that was) the perception. We (had) one terrible year. But I think also the important thing is you need high-level quarterback play, and at the end of the day, 2020 wasnt a great season offensively for us.
I think we know how important it is to be successful on offense. I think thats part of it. We need high-level play on offense, you need to be able to score points. Thats part of it. Its not, Hey we made this bad move here, or we brought in this and this didnt work out.
By 2020, the Eagles ranked 26th in the NFL in scoring, and while Roseman was careful not to blame everything on Carson Wentz’s decline, his tone about roster building has clearly changed. Hes now saying the aging roster wasnt the problem, it was Wentzs performance.
You need a really good O-line, you need a really good D-line and you need high-level quarterback play, he said Monday. And that just gives you an opportunity to be great. (I don’t agree with) this perception that we made all these mistakes (and) weve got to learn from them. I think part of that is how hard it is to have high-level quarterback play for our team.
Why is this relevant now?
Because of all the veteran additions over the last two weeks.
Taken individually, they all make sense.
Kelce is still the best center in football. Graham had 11 sacks last year and the Eagles got him at a ridiculously (relatively) cheap $6 million. Slay and Bradberry both signed deals that are significantly below their value. And Cox, while hes not the player he once was, was one of the NFL sack leaders last year among interior linemen, and $10 million is a fair price for players like him.
Roseman rejected the narrative around Cox more than anything.
I dont really understand the perception on Fletch, Roseman said. I think Fletch is a great player. He had seven sacks. I dont know how many tackles had seven sacks last year but not many. He took less to come back. He was offered more. I think when you talk about him and the kind of player he is too, all youve got to do is turn on the tape and see the power he plays with. Hes a unique guy.
That doesnt mean were done there. Theres some young guys there were excited to see here (Milton Williams and Jordan Davis). Its a priority position.
Coming out of the 2017 Super Bowl season, the Eagles had the 4th-oldest roster in the NFL in 2018, 3rd-oldest in 2019 and 6th-oldest in 2020, according to Spotrac.
Currently, theyre 13th-oldest, just a fraction over the league average.
They have 13 projected starters who are 26 or younger and three more who are 27 or 28.
So that all adds up to Roseman feeling confident the roster isnt too old, and that running it back with some all-time Eagles greats makes perfect sense.
When you start with those guys – and weve got a long time before we play a game – I think its a good start, he said.
