How does Howie continue to dominate the Eagles brand?

I don’t have a clue as to Howie Roseman’s resilience. No matter how badly he plays with others, he remains Jeff Lurie’s number one front office guy.

Somehow, after all the drama of the past few seasons and some disappointing drafts,   Roseman is still in position to make the final call on draft picks and potential free agents.

Roseman is a loose cannon when it comes to drafting and free agent signings. He was the GM for the notorious “Dream Team” free agent spree in 2011. He also ran the 2011 draft, which brought Danny Watkins, Jaiquawn Jarrett and Curtis Marsh in the first three rounds.

But Roseman also ran the 2012 draft, which brought Fletcher Cox, Mychal Kendricks, Vinny Curry, Nick Foles and Brandon Boykin. The 2013 offseason brought free agents Connor Barwin and Cary Williams and draft picks Lane Johnson, Zach Ertz and Bennie Logan. Not too shabby…

And then, I daresay it has been been clarified, Roseman pushed for and pulled the trigger on Marcus Smith as the first round draft choice for the Eagles in 2014. That one sent Chip Kelly over the edge…and here we are today.

I would categorize Roseman’s personnel skills as a mixed bag.

Look, I’ve read the Reuben Frank piece which portrays Howie Roseman as the secret love of Jeff Lurie, who for some reason cannot let Howie go and continues to allow Howie to retard any chance the organization has of gaining a competitive edge. I would not go that far in the condemnation of Howie—after all, he’s not the guy missing blocks and tackles on the field.

But when the departed Chip Kelly now says Roseman was holding the Eagles back, and claims he is the fall guy for Roseman’s resurgence back into Lurie’s inner circle, you have to wonder if maybe where there’s smoke there’s fire.

It is kinda weird that Howie was in charge of conducting the Eagles head-coach interviews the past few weeks. Jeff Lurie was not present for the interviews.

Somehow it feels like I am now rooting for the “Philadelphia Rosemans”.  It’s okay as long as Howie figures it out and gets it right. But I prefer personnel decisions being made by a veteran football guy. I’m willing to be proven wrong—and the good Lord knows Howie has had his share of hits along with the misses—but Howie’s overall track record has resulted in zero playoff wins in six years running.