The Eagles can't have their cake and eat it, too.
Sure, the thought process is admirable: Re-tool the roster while trying to win now. Start building for a real chance at the Super Bowl in 2021 and beyond while appeasing fans, team owner Jeff Lurie and a veteran-heavy locker room by trying to make the playoffs in a down NFC East.
It all sounds good. But every step in one direction is a step away from the other.
As the 1-4-1 Eagles get set for the next few weeks of big decisions, it's time to pick a lane: Now or later. No more halfway stuff. The Eagles are either committed to salvaging this season, stealing the NFC East and refusing to waste a prime season for the quarterback they committed $128M too or they are invested in the future.
And it's up to Howie Roseman to guide the path.
If the Eagles are all-in to make a run to January (yes, I know how silly that sounds when looking at this team's current record), then rumors of being a buyer at the trade deadline make sense. Help at linebacker, offensive line or wide receiver could change the course of this season. Even a healthy body or two would make life easier for this coaching staff.
Bringing back DeSean Jackson, Jason Peters and Alshon Jeffery from injured reserve makes sense, and would only add talent and depth to this roster. Keeping Carson Wentz under center for as many plays and for as long as he can stay upright is the only way to go. There's a (weak) division to be won, and the Eagles owe it to themselves to win it.
But that path also means cutting down playing time for young wide receivers like Travis Fulgham, Greg Ward, Jalen Reagor and John Hightower. It means potentially taking Jordan Mailata off the field at left tackle. It means trading away future assets in the draft and losing some cap room that could be rolled over into an important offseason. It means less Jalen Hurts, potentially muddying the evaluation process at the quarterback position in a year where six or seven wins might be the ceiling for this franchise.
If the Eagles pivot and stop prioritizing 2020, acting as a seller (could the team get something for a healthy Zach Ertz? What about Rodney McLeod?) is prudent. Certainly no team with an eye on the future would buy to supplement a 1-4-1 team. And as for the veterans coming back? Unless there's a real thought process behind bringing back Jackson, Jeffery or Peters in 2021 (and there should not be for any sane mind), then every snap they take away from young players now only hurts this franchise's progress.
The smartest teams in professional sports can thread the needle Roseman is (seemingly) trying to thread. Win now, but build for later. This is how the Los Angeles Dodgers operate. It's how the New England Patriots reel off playoff year after playoff year. It's how the Celtics compete at a high level in the NBA. The Eagles are a good franchise, and have been quite successful over the last two decades. But they aren't in that class, and can't be trusted to serve both masters at one time.
Roseman set the Eagles down this course during the offseason, casting aside veterans at linebacker and drafting a quarterback in the second round. Anyone listening or paying any attention during the combine would have seen a retooling year coming when Roseman uttered this quote.
"That was our championship run," Roseman told Angelo Cataldi on WIP in February. "And that was a period of time for the Eagles, and now I think we're building a different period of time. We're excited about some of our young players, Dallas Goedert, Miles Sanders. Our vision is that they are on the field the next time we win the Super Bowl and the confetti falls on our heads. We just want to make sure we're not doing a disservice with too many eggs in the basket for one year as opposed to looking at our team for a long period."
Of course, Roseman has already made decisions that lead to questions about what the real direction is around here. Is Darius Slay the kind of player that will be here and still playing at a high level for the next Eagles run? And on a lesser level, was losing 2020 draft pick (and camp standout) Casey Toohill on waivers worth it to activate Vinny Curry last week? Every decision that fits under column A takes away from column B.
The trade deadline is in a few weeks. The Eagles have a chance to win the NFC East, with a roster full of veterans that have done special things in January. They also have a murky future, questions at the quarterback position and a team that can use every asset and every look at young players to make the most informed decisions possible moving forward.
It's time to stop the halfway stuff. The Eagles need to pick a direction and go all in. The future of the franchise depends on it.
