Howie Roseman and Nick Sirianni
HOWIE ROSEMAN: Hey, guys. Always the worst day of the year. Everyone we bring in this building, we bring in because of how much we appreciate them and we like them. We get to select who we bring in this building, which is one of the perks of our jobs.
One of the worst parts of our jobs is telling 38 guys today that they don’t make the team. We had an opportunity to do that together with every single one of them. We’ll see what happens here in the next 24 hours. We’ve got a lot of uncertainty. We’ve got a lot of work here to do, too, as a staff with all the players that are available. Any upgrade, even incrementally, that helps the team we’re looking for here. So, we’ll get right back up and get back to work.
Q. We haven’t talked to you since the WR Jahan Dotson trade. Why make that move, and how long did it take to put that together? (Ed Kracz)
HOWIE ROSEMAN: A player that we did a lot of work within the Draft, in the Draft process, really liked the player, felt like we knew him really well, brought him into the building, had exposure to him. We felt like we had a vision through the coaching staff of how he could be utilized.
There was an opportunity there to get the player, obviously give up a second day draft compensation, which is important for all of us, but we felt like it was worthwhile based on what we knew, what we thought that we needed, and made the trade.
Q. What did you guys see from CB James Bradberry to convince you to keep him? (Reuben Frank)
HOWIE ROSEMAN: James always has had really good football instincts. When you see him play safety every day here and see his ability to diagnose his football instincts. I think for all of us, that’s a transition, that’s a different position than playing outside corner.
He’s got a skill set. It’s a long season. We already know that he’s had tremendous success in this league playing outside corner as well. With the goals that we have for this football team, having a veteran player like that on the roster that we know we can rely on when called upon, we felt like was important.
Q. Nick, can you just address CB James Bradberry as well, what you saw from him. (Reuben Frank)
NICK SIRIANNI: Same. Versatility, football IQ. Yeah, same type of thing [Executive Vice President/General Manager] Howie [Roseman] was just talking about.
Q. The situation could have been a difficult one. Got demoted, new position. (Reuben Frank)
NICK SIRIANNI: He’s a pro, and he’s been a pro ever since he’s come into this building. He’s led by example. He’s led with his play and guys look up to him.
Q. Do you expect CB James Bradberry to be on the roster the entirety of the season? (Tim McManus)
HOWIE ROSEMAN: Yeah. Obviously when you’re talking about our 53-man roster at any position, things come up. Opportunities arise for our football team, for other football teams, so I don’t want to get into that with not only him, but anyone, because that backs you in a corner.
We say this to our players. Our word’s all we got. When we tell our players something, when we tell other teams something, we’re going to abide by that. I’d hate to get up here and be dramatic about anything about anyone on the roster because through the course of the season things come up and opportunities arise.
He’s on the team because we think he can help our team.
Q. How do you view the backup center situation? Is G Landon Dickerson a consideration? (Jeff McLane)
HOWIE ROSEMAN: I think the first part about it, and we talked about this a little bit today, we’re incomplete right now. We’re at 53, but we really view it as a 70-man roster. We’ve got to go through that here in the next 24 hours to get some players back. We don’t know how that’s going to go.
We feel like we’re prepared for whatever the scenarios are on that. As we sit here, things look probably a little more incomplete than they will look in the next 24 hours. We obviously let go of some guys who have played the position. You hope to get some guys back. You also have contingency plans in case you don’t. Obviously, we have other guys on the roster who have done it.
Without getting into any specifics, because it’s probably part of our game planning and part of our roster management, but there are other guys on the roster who have done it and done it at a high level.
Q. When finding cuts on the board, what went into the decision about C/G Dylan McMahon? (Brooks Kubena)
HOWIE ROSEMAN: These are hard decisions, and you’re really trying to balance the opportunities you have this year as a football team and also trying to protect the future of the team and of the organization.
So, certainly not an easy one. Draft picks always are a little bit of a special place for you, as are all these players, but when you pick guys off the board, and I think just for us, where we were, looking at the offensive line as a whole and looking at the roster as a whole, tough decision, but that’s where we came up on it.
Q. With that balance, this is the first year you have those two spots on IR that you can designate to return. How did that shift things strategy-wise, or did it? (John McMullen)
HOWIE ROSEMAN: Well, we had two guys that were injured, two guys that if they came back healthy at some point during the season, we think they can help us, but we’ve got to get them right. They’re hurt. So those were two guys that we would have had to put on the 53 in other years and then put them on IR tomorrow.
Certainly, felt like the rule in this situation helped us keep two other players that we may not have been able to keep.
Q. Going back to the WR Jahan Dotson trade, that’s one of three trades that’s happened within the NFC East. What made you feel comfortable, especially with opponents that basically you’re trying to beat every year? (Chris Franklin)
HOWIE ROSEMAN: I certainly don’t think they’re trying to help us by any stretch of the imagination. So, I think that you’re always kind of concerned about trading within the division.
No, we’re not going to get any freebies from anyone, not that we do from anyone in the league. But I think just dealing with [Washington Commanders General Manager] Adam Peters and knowing him from San Francisco and knowing that he’s got a certain value for his players, and if he gets the value that he feels confident in his decision-making, have a lot of respect for him and dealing with him.
I think it’s always harder when you do it in your division. You always look at these trades. It’s like a fraternity being a GM in this league. There are only 31 others in the whole world that you share that with. So, you always want to make trades that are win-win. Probably a little less so for trades in the NFC East.
Q. Thinking from a big picture perspective, think back to January and February, you had a plan for the off-season. You’re going into the season now with this group. How do you think it is compared to what you wanted? (Zach Berman)
HOWIE ROSEMAN: I’m not trying to ignore the question, but don’t know that I’ve had a chance to really sit back and take kind of a global perspective of how the off-season has been just because we’ve been working. I think you get a little chance of that in June and kind of have a vision of how it could look, and then you get to camp, and you get the preseason games, and you get some more information.
Also feel like we continue to have work to do. Our work isn’t done here today. We’ll continue to try and improve the roster today, tomorrow, as we’ve talked about up through the trade deadline, where it really kind of gets harder through that.
Definitely feel like we’ve improved in a lot of areas. Also feel like we’ve lost a couple of great players here too that you’re trying to always compensate for.
I’ll think about that here as we go forward and try to get a better perspective on it.
Q. You guys had 11 guys, kept 11 guys, a defensive back, safety, cornerback. I was just wondering, obviously, depth was an issue last year at that position. How important was it to make sure you guys had the necessary depth there? (Martin Frank)
HOWIE ROSEMAN: Big off-season priority for us. I feel like I needed to take responsibility for not putting the coaches in a good enough spot in our defensive backfield last year and didn’t want to have it happen again.
Excited about the guys we have. Excited about the opportunities here, certainly in the next 24 hours, to continue to add to that group as well.
Q. S Tristin McCollum, a guy that didn’t make this team last year as an undrafted free agent, big leap this year, year two, what have you seen in his ability to progress from last year to this year that earned him a spot? (Ed Kracz)
NICK SIRIANNI: Tristin obviously flashed in games and did some really good things in games that we all saw, but also, he was consistent in the things that he did in practice. He has great athletic ability that can help on special teams, and we know how he can affect the game on special teams as well.
Really happy for him. As sad as we are for the guys that don’t make it, there are stories — for whatever reason, that sits with you longer, the ones that don’t make it and the hard conversations you have. But a guy like Tristin, you’re really excited for.
I’m not saying that equals out or anything like that, but really excited for him because he went and earned it. He’s tough, and he has the ability to make plays with his athletic ability.
Q. Along those lines, is there anyone else in that vein that kind of stands out to you that you got to deliver some good news to? (Dave Zangaro)
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, but again, it’s exciting for all the guys that made the team because Howie [Roseman] and his staff have done an unbelievable job of putting the roster together and giving us so much good competition to make this team is really exciting.
As we continue to call these guys — because obviously we went all the way to the last minute, and we’re still calling some of the guys that now know they made the team. But you don’t get to do that with every single guy, but we will here later this afternoon.
Q. It’s a much younger team than last year. How much of a priority was getting younger, getting faster, younger guys stay healthy, all that, part of the equation? (Reuben Frank)
HOWIE ROSEMAN: Yeah, I think I probably look at it more so because of how top heavy we are from a contract perspective. We have a lot of good players making well-deserved money that we have to have the bottom of our roster as much on rookie deals as possible.
We’ve been fortunate that, even though we’ve paid these guys, that we have had some picks. At the same time, they’ve got to prove it. Nobody is on scholarship here. So, it’s well deserved that those guys have had the opportunity to make this team. I think it is important, as you build your roster, to compete for championships, that you have a growing young core that you can build along with the guys that you’re paying.
Q. You have 28 defensive players versus 22 on offense. Is there any concern that it’s too lopsided? (Jeff McLane)
HOWIE ROSEMAN: Again, I think the telling part will be once we get to 70, Jeff. Again, we use that 70-man roster more so when we talk about numbers than we do necessarily 53.
I think in the end it will look very consistent with how we’ve looked the past couple years.
Q. With two new coordinators, is the process any different than years past, and how much weight do their voices carry? (Bo Wulf)
HOWIE ROSEMAN: I’d like to think we’re listening to everyone who has an opinion, who has an educated opinion about things, who has studied things and who has some expertise in the area.
At the end of the day, our jobs are different. I think that’s one of the things that we respect about each other is that I have a different job than Coach [Nick Sirianni]. Our scouts have a different job than the assistant coaches, and that’s understandable.
But at the end of the day, we’re all trying to win. We’re trying to win as much as we possibly can this year and then go back and do it again next year and the year after that.
Yeah, they have voices. We had an opportunity to do that. I can’t tell you that every single guy on the roster was unanimous. I think that’s okay. I understand that.
NICK SIRIANNI: Coaches are selfish. So, if you ask [Defensive Ends/Outside Linebackers Coach] Jeremiah Washburn, he’s going to keep eight guys at that position. Sometimes — we’re selfish. They want to keep their guys because they’ve worked so hard with it.
HOWIE ROSEMAN: And I think it’s easy to accuse front office guys of wanting to have their draft picks and have guys like that. I think, because I’ve been doing this long enough, I try to really balance it and try to make sure that we’re doing the right things to make sure the coaches have everything they need to win as many games as possible and that we’re also developing players, so we don’t go into next year with 25 free agents and having to replace a ton of guys. But it’s tricky.
Q. It’s the first-year you guys have been together and not kept an undrafted rookie. Conversely there are more guys on futures deals than past years. Is that part of the strategy for this off-season? (Zach Berman)
HOWIE ROSEMAN: I was thinking we should do a deli takeout thing, where people get numbers because it’s really become a competition that maybe coach likes, but I feel bad. I actually do feel bad when people get shut down.
Yeah, we approached — as we talked about, we approached the futures a little bit differently this year based on the quality and the quantity in the draft that we thought. We were a little bit more aggressive in the futures market, and we knew that the undrafted market would be different just for this year. That being said, we had a bunch of undrafted guys that did well, just as we looked at the competition for the 53 on the first glance didn’t make it, but some guys we’d be interested in bringing back.
Q. Having had a chance to look at the rookie class throughout training camp and in preseason, what’s your evaluation of the group? (E.J. Smith)
HOWIE ROSEMAN: We haven’t played a real game, so I think it would be premature to have any definitive evaluations about how they’re going to play in the NFL. Going to Brazil will be a big test for all of us. Excited to see those guys.
I think, as advertised, which is really the best compliment you can give a group of guys coming out of training camp. All of them, incredible students of the game, want to learn, competitive guys, great character. Really, really excited about this group of rookies. Feel like they have a chance to make their own imprint on this team and have an impact on this team, not only this year, but going forward.
Q. You did see some of it last year, but you’re expecting to see a lot more of LB Nolan Smith. How much more ready is he to step up and fill a role as a third or fourth rusher? (Jeff McLane)
HOWIE ROSEMAN: I think Nolan’s got unique get-off speed and motor. I think, when you look at the guys that have that, they can be disruptive. They can be productive. I think for us, like the guy is going to give you everything he’s got, and he’s got tools in his body to do it.
He’s still a developing player. He’s still kind of learning we do things differently than they do things in college. Obviously tremendously successful in college, and he’s still growing, and he’s still developing. He’s got all the tools in his body, and he’s got the right intangibles to be a good player.
Q. In terms of DT Thomas Booker this year making the roster, is he a better fit within what Defensive Coordinator Vic Fangio does? What went into the conversation with him being part of the lineup? (Brooks Kubena)
HOWIE ROSEMAN: This guy, if you were here in the off-season, he lived in the facility. Tremendous work ethic. Obviously an incredibly smart guy, a Stanford guy. He’s got all the tools in his body. Just an incredible tribute to him and how hard he worked.
When you see his tape and his get-off, and his ability to play with leverage, to play with power, to affect the quarterback, to be disruptive around the quarterback in the backfield. To us, it was clear the guy deserved to be on the team. I probably should have said this to him before I said it to you guys.
Just really proud of him. It’s a great tribute to our development program. Those guys, the program that we have, led by [Head of Football Development and Strategy] Connor [Barwin], does a tremendous job of developing guys and trying to work on their weaknesses while they’re on the practice squad in the spring and in the summer and then obviously with our coaches, they did a tremendous job of putting in position.
You see a guy with talent, with intangibles, with work ethic who looked really good. Excited to see what he can do during the regular season.
NICK SIRIANNI: It’s just a real good example too of the work that he got against a good offensive line last year while he was here. The improving Thomas on our practice squad last year really improved because of the quality of player he was going against the entire year.
No doubt has he made himself a really good player to a point where he’s on this roster, but he’s that iron sharpening iron is really special. To see him grow because he’s going against [G] Landon [Dickerson], he’s going against [C] Cam [Jurgens] and [Former Eagles C] Jason Kelce. A credit to our roster as a whole.
Q. What did WR Johnny Wilson show you this summer? Being a sixth-round guy. And what kind of role do you see him in this year? (Martin Frank)
NICK SIRIANNI: We wish he was a little bit bigger (laughter). No, he’s got great size.
HOWIE ROSEMAN: He just wanted to use the Skee-Lo line.
NICK SIRIANNI: That’s a good song.
HOWIE ROSEMAN: It is a good song.
NICK SIRIANNI: Again, you’re looking to fill different roles within your wide receiver room, and he’s got the ability to do some things that are really unique. His size is unique. His strength is unique. His toughness is unique.
Without getting too much into how we’ll use him, he just fit something that we need in that room, and he really embraced it, and we’re looking forward to things that he can do this year.
NICK SIRIANNI: One last thing because that was the last one, right, Bob? A couple of guys that were on staff here worked with Joe D, Joe D’Alessandris at the Ravens, and as I get to — I was one of them. I worked with him at two places at Kansas City and also with the Chargers. [Passing Game Coordinator/Associate Head Coach] Kevin Patullo worked with him in Kansas City and also the Bills, and [Defensive Ends/Outside Linebackers] Coach Jeremiah Washburn is close with him as well.
Our hearts and prayers go out to his three daughters and his grandkids. As I get to read a little bit about Joe more, obviously knowing him and reading some of the articles that are coming out on him, everybody says the same thing. He really made you feel special. That’s the thing that keeps coming up on Joe D. He’d make you feel special about yourself. He’d make your family feel special about them.
It is so as advertised. Joe D was a great, great, great man. My wife and I were just talking about it the other day. My oldest son Jacob was born, and Brett would bring him into the office, and Joe D would be on the floor crawling around with him. Joe just making my wife feel good, making Jacob feel good at age 1. He had this unbelievable ability. He always said he was trying to get his grandchildren time in with Jacob when he was in the office.
Man, he was a special coach. He was a special person. Our prayers here with the Eagles go out to Joe D’s family and the Ravens.