Eagles News Howie Roseman argues in favor of roster-building at linebacker. shocking to see why

The Eagles are unrepentant about their roster building strategy. They build from graves.Sometimes also at the expense of other positions – namely linebacker.”I feel like we’ve had success here for a long time to build the team a certain way,” Eagles general manager Howie Roseman said Wednesday.

“And I think maybe there’s a bias that we don’t care who we play at linebacker. Again, our two Super Bowl teams in the last six years, the backfield for those guys has been good.Besides a nice reminder that the Eagles have indeed been to two Super Bowls in recent years — smooth move,

Howie — Roseman isn’t wrong. The Eagles played really well in those Super Bowl years.And it still hasn’t changed their list building philosophy. They still don’t put a lot of resources into this position.In 2022, the Eagles got a big season in former undrafted free agent T.J.

Edwards and a really solid free agent year from Kyzir White on a one-year deal. Then they both walked after the Super Bowl, with Edwards going to Chicago and White following Jonathan Gannon to Arizona.The Eagles clearly put all their eggs in Nakobe Dean’s basket and it didn’t work out in 2023.

interviews Eagles again , but for a different job”I think if anything; it’s my belief in the players that we have, the young players that we have. I have a lot of faith and I know the coach has faith in Nakobe Dean,” Roseman said. “I believe in the player. I believe in man.“We lost two running backs at that position, two good players from our Super Bowl team, and Nakobe was waiting on the sidelines.

We cast him in this role. Apparently it didn’t work out perfectly for him this year. It doesn’t change our confidence in the player.”It’s understandable why the Eagles would want two transitions to Dean through 2023. They used the No. 83 overall pick (a third-rounder) on Dean in 2022. And for the Eagles that is a very significant resource on the position.But the Eagles and then-DC Jonathan Gannon made no effort to get Dean on the field as a rookie. Edwards and White were playing well so Dean sat on the bench. And then the Eagles just expected Dean to show up in 2023 and be their starting middle linebacker and green-dot wearer.But Dean got hurt in the season opener, went on IR, came back, got hurt again and finished the season on IR. Dean only played in five games and didn’t play well, although it’s fair to question whether he was ever truly healthy.

The problem with the 2023 plan was that the Eagles had no Plan B. They expected Dean to start and the only additions in the spring came when they signed Nicholas Morrow to a veteran minimum contract and Ben VanSumere. after the drafts.During training camp, when they clearly needed help, they signed Zach Cunningham and Myles Jack in August. 6. Cunningham ended up being the Eagles’ best linebacker by a long shot in 2023.

“Then we felt like weand#039;d have the ability to get an off-ball linebacker, WILL linebacker, who can run and hit,” Roseman said. “And honestly when you watch the tape, Zach Cunningham had a good year. He really did.

He had the mind we like in this profession.Cunningham, 29, wasn’t great in 2023, but he was decent for a player in training camp. And that might actually encourage Roseman to do it again. He thought the Eagles could get a decent weakside linebacker at some point, and they did with Cunningham.While Cunningham has exceeded expectations, the Eagles have received decidedly worse line play this season. Watch the playoffs the last two weeks and you’ll see big-name linebackers flying around and making plays. And then remember that Morrow and Cunningham were the Eagles’ answers in 2023.It’s worth noting, by the way, that the Eagles are back in a similar situation going into 2024.

Both Morrow and Cunningham are set to be free agents again. Dean will be coming off a foot surgery but he and VanSumeren are the only linebackers under contract from the previous season.The thing that made the Eagles’ skimping at linebacker hurt even more is that they have poured all these resources into the defensive line and didn’t get the payout, especially down the stretch, that you would have expected. If this happens, less protection has probably been built.But that didn’t happen. And that left the Eagles very clearly exposed and then exploited in the middle of the field.

“I don’t think you’re perfect for making a list,” Roseman said. “You and#039;ll make mistakes. I think you can look at the four teams that are playing right now and I promise we can go over some of the things that they would like to have back. That is part of it.“The most important thing we need to do is have a vision of what we want it to look like. Weand must have the process we want. Sometimes you can have a vision, a process, and the result is not what you want. So you have to make sure you’re not overreacting to a result that might have been just an anomaly at the time, and then you have to see if the process might be right. “.