PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Since selecting Oklahoma quarterback Jalen Hurts in the second round of last week's NFL Draft, Eagles General Manager Howie Roseman has made several explanatory media appearances locally and nationally.
That, by itself, is not necessarily unusual.
However, Roseman's availability this year has been heavily focused on adding to a position in the second round that was already in pretty good shape with 27-year-old Carson Wentz under a very lucrative long-term contract.
"I thought, just based on all of our experiences together, and this player in particular, that it wouldn't be like this," Roseman told SportsRadio 94WIP's Angelo Cataldi and The Morning Team on Tuesday.
"And I also thought, just based on what we've done this offseason, that we'd all talk about how much better the team is."
Roseman says he knew some would scratch their heads and criticize, but he didn't expect it to this degree.
"I guess I'm surprised," he said, "but emotion's a good thing. Passion's a good thing. I love being part of this city. I love the passion about our teams, and I want nothing more than to bring happiness to our fans, and I know that's through winning games."
What does Wentz think, though?
Shortly after the pick this past Friday, Wentz welcomed the talented Hurts to Philadelphia on Twitter. And he texted him, according to NBC Sports Philadelphia's John Clark.
Welcome to the best football city in America brotha! https://t.co/CKAMNLO7mb
— Carson Wentz (@cj_wentz) April 25, 2020Jalen Hurts told me Carson Wentz texted him and has"welcomed me with open arms""He's a very established, championship winning quarterback. I can't wait to be under him and learn. Whatever he's willing to teach me, I'm willing to take in"1on1 with Jalen NBC10 11:35 tonight pic.twitter.com/q3dwW41TvW
— John Clark (@JClarkNBCS) April 26, 2020Wentz's job is safe, but that doesn't mean it was the easiest thing to let Wentz know ahead of time what the Eagles were considering doing with the 53rd overall pick.
"Well, it's not comfortable," Roseman shared. "I'm always going to be honest with you guys. It's not comfortable, because I get it. What helps the team the most at this moment, in his mind, is probably a different player, a different position, because we have a great player (at quarterback)."
Roseman, however, is not only thinking about how to help Wentz with new talent, but how to protect the organization if Wentz can't be on the field. "And I've seen, when you don't have protection at that position, how miserable it can make all of us, and I don't want to go through that."
Wentz played all 16 regular-season games in 2019 before getting knocked out of the playoff loss to Seattle by a controversial hit from Jadeveon Clowney. Prior to that, Wentz injured his back in 2018, suffered a severe knee injury in 2017 and was injured at times at North Dakota State University.
While Wentz healed in 2017, Nick Foles stepped in, and the Eagles won the Super Bowl. In 2018, Foles was there again to lead the Eagles into the playoffs and advance to the second round. Against Seattle, the Eagles called on 40-year-old Josh McCown — who was injured, himself, that game. McCown played valiantly, but it's arguable that, if Wentz — or a healthy, reliable backup — were in the game, the Eagles would have beaten the Seahawks.
Some wonder whether Roseman could have taken a quarterback, maybe even Hurts, in later rounds. If that happened, the pick wouldn't have drawn as much attention. But Roseman didn't want to miss a chance to develop Hurts' talent when he was available in the 53rd pick.
Since taking Hurts, Roseman has said, without implicating himself for tampering, that he learned from the 2012 Draft. The Eagles wanted to take Russell Wilson and Foles that year, but by the time their third-round pick came up, Wilson had gone to Seattle.
Howie Roseman on why Eagles took Jalen Hurts at 53 & didn't wait & how it relates to 2012 draft & missing out on Russell Wilson"I don't know if there's a big difference between taking the 53rd pick in the draft & taking a pick in the 3rd round if you feel strongly about a guy" pic.twitter.com/RaWGdeuGhy
— John Clark (@JClarkNBCS) April 27, 2020"I don't think that we out-thought ourselves (by picking Hurts)," Roseman told WIP. "This is always a priority to us — to fix that position and to make sure we're strong."
If Hurts never sees the field at quarterback every down, that means Wentz is healthy and playing well enough. If Wentz performs and Hurts is able to use his athleticism to contribute in other areas on the field, then the pick may sit better with fans who currently aren't in favor. That's the risk Roseman took.
In the end, Roseman envisions Wentz winning the Super Bowl, while strongly believing drafting Hurts where he did is what's best for the team.
"We got to constantly re-load," Roseman said. "We got to constantly be gunning for (the Super Bowl) because, as long as I'm here, I don't ever want to hear the word re-build or re-tool. We're going for it, man."
