What to Know
- Bleacher Report listed the worst trades of the last decade for each NFL team.
- Roseman was on the other end of trades for five of 31 teams.
- One trade with the Saints led to the acquisition of A.J. Brown, and selecting Jalen Carter and Cooper DeJean in subsequent drafts.
No general manager, regardless of the sport, has a perfect track record. For every great move, there always seems to be a terrible one to offset it.
Eagles general manager Howie Roseman is no different. While the Eagles won the Super Bowl, his signing of defensive end Bryce Huff to a 3-year, $51-million contract was an abject failure, the likes of which would throw some personnel execs’ futures into question.
With our All Access Daily newsletter, stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Philadelphia sports teams!
SIGN UP HERE But Roseman certainly is among the best in any sport when it comes to trades. His winning percentage on trades has to rank at or near the top.
Bleacher Report recently published an article, chronicling the worst trades made by all 32 NFL teams over the last decade. Of the 31 teams not named the Eagles, the team on the right end of five teams’ worst trades was (you guessed it) Roseman and the Eagles.
Detroit Lions: Trading CB Darius Slay for a 2020 3rd-round & 5th-round pick
Slay was unable to sign a long-term deal with the Lions, so Detroit sent him East to Philadelphia for two 2020 draft picks. The Lions were in a no-win situation, but it was Roseman who locked down the deal, and netted his team one of the pillars of a defense that went to two Super Bowls, winning one. Slay earned three of his five Pro Bowl nominations with the Birds before signing with the Steelers in March.
Philadelphia Eagles
Find the latest Philadelphia Eagles news, highlights, analysis and more with NBC Sports Philadelphia.
Minnesota Vikings: Acquiring QB Sam Bradford for 2017 1st-round pick, 2018 conditional 4th-rd pick
Roseman preyed upon a desperate team in the Vikings, who had lost starting QB Teddy Bridgewater to a season-ending knee injury in the 2016 preseason. The Eagles drafted Carson Wentz (more on him later), and were happy to ease him in before this opportunity presented itself. The trade netted the Eagles DE Derek Barnett, who recovered the Tom Brady fumble after Brandon Graham’s strip-sack in Super Bowl LII, and DE Josh Sweat, who had 43 sacks in seven seasons, and was a key player in the team’s Sup Bowl LIX win.
Tennessee Titans: Trading WR A.J. Brown for 2022 1st-round and 3rd-round pick
Similar to the Slay deal, Brown and the Titans reached an impasse in contract negotiations leading up to the 2022 draft. Roseman shipped picks 18 and 101 to Tennessee for Brown, who immediately became WR1 in Philadelphia, and has been ever since. He made Pro Bowls in 2022 and 2023, and during his three seasons in Philadelphia ranks among the tops in the game in receiving yards (4,031), receiving touchdowns (25) and yards per catch (15.4).
Indianapolis Colts: Acquiring QB Carson Wentz for 2021 3rd-round pick & 2022 conditional 2nd-round pick
New Orleans Saints: Making multiple trades to net Chris Olave and Trevor Penning
Stay with us, because there are layers to this one. We’ll begin with the Colts/Wentz deal. Not only did this trade get the Eagles out from under the albatross of Wentz’s contract, it was the first domino that led to a handful to future stars.
In the 2021 Draft, the Birds traded down from 6th to 12th with the Dolphins, then, using the 3rd-rounder from this trade, moved back up to 10th, where they drafted DeVonta Smith. If they don’t have that pick, they don’t move up, and the Eagles likely end up chasing Smith twice a year.
The conditional pick became a 1st-round pick, because Wentz played 75 percent of the Colts offensive snaps in 2021. That ended up being the 16th overall pick in 2022, which brings us to the Saints.
The Eagles, holding picks 16 and 19 in the 2022 Draft, made a deal with New Orleans:
Saints receive: Picks 16, 19, 194 (6th round) in the 2022 draft
Eagles receive: Picks 18, 101, and 237 in 2022; 2023 1st-rd pick, 2024 2nd-rd pick
And here come the dominoes:
- The Eagles sent 18 & 101 to the Tennesse Titans for Brown.
- The 2023 1st-round pick was 10th overall. Roseman took that pick, plus a fourth-rounder, to trade with the Bears for the 9th overall pick, where they selected DT Jalen Carter.
- They took the Saints 2024 2nd-rd pick (50th overall) and used that to trade up to 40th, where they selected DB Cooper DeJean.
Making one of these trades is admirable. Making five borders on larceny. It begs the question: do these other GMs have caller ID? If so, why would they answer if they saw a number with a 215 area code?
Don’t they know it likely won’t end well for them?