The Enigma Named Howie
Howie Roseman, the much maligned GM of the Philadelphia Eagles is in a precarious position this coming off-season. His job is in jeopardy for the second time in his Eagles career; but this time he may end up in the wood chipper as opposed to the broom closet.
He has, rightfully, taken a brunt of the blame for the way this team has performed (well underperformed) over the 2020 season. From running up a payroll that would make George Steinbrenner blush to missing on DK Metcalf, Justin Jefferson, and Alvin Kamara. Nobody can blame the Philadelphia sports faithful for wanting to break out the guillotine.
There are camps of people loyal to Doug who cite his late season success in the face of adversity and injury. They champion him as a leader of men who never throws his guys under the bus. And of course Doug leading our beloved Eagles to the promised land and beating the evil empire to bring home the Lombardi.
There are Carson loyalists who think fondly of him being the MVP (we know Tom technically won but let’s be real Carson was the best player in football that year). Loyalists who see the raw talent he possesses, his ability to make plays only a handful of QBs in league history can make, and his toughness coming back after two devastating injuries in back to back years to lead a team mostly comprised of the practice squad to a division title last season.
There are even defenders of Jim Schwartz who cite his low scoring average, his elite defensive line, and his ability to make it work with a subpar back 7.
But when it comes to Howie Roseman, all the support he garnered and equity he accrued from his return to power and subsequent Super Bowl win; seems to be a thing of the past......... and I think Howie might deserve a little more leeway.
If there is one thing we can say about the GM, it’s that the man can crunch some numbers. Everyone knows we are in salary cap Hell, but he almost always finds a way to make gold out of garbage in regards to the salary cap. In the same way people believe this is an outlier season for Carson and/or Doug, this year could be that outlier season for Howie and the cap.
The best person to fix this situation, is the man who got us into it. Keeping Howie around is probably the better move to make.
Hiring a new GM would come with its own problems.
What reputable GM would want to come into this cap mess and try to clean it up? They’d be working with both hands tied behind their back, unable to sign anyone, and in the midst of a full blown QB controversy.
The people who want Howie’s head on silver platter cite his poor track record with the draft (rightfully so) and his signing of older injury prone players. His supporters take creedence in his cap acumen and his ability to win almost every trade. What if there was a way to allow Howie to continue being the cap and trade wizard, while also ensuring someone else was calling the shots on draft day?
In comes John Dorsey. He is already in the building, has built two Super Bowl championship rosters in the last decade with the Packers and Chiefs, and has a long track record of picking the right guys when it comes to the draft.
I propose they set up something reminiscent of Joe Banner and Andy Reid. Big Red shopped for the groceries and Banner found out how to pay for them. Make Howie the President of Football Operations and allow him to manage the cap. Make John Dorsey the official GM and director of player personnel he gets total autonomy to shops for the groceries, while Howie finds a way to pay for them.
This may never work out, Howie may have struck gold in 2017 and caught lightning in a bottle. He may be exactly what his biggest critics say he is. But heading into a tumultuous offseason where the coach, coordinators and QB might all be gone; some semblance of continuity would be helpful.The cap situation in 2021 means there is almost nothing to lose, so why not see if Howie Roseman can be The Wizard once more
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