Philadelphia Eagles GM Howie Roseman has had more hits than misses over the past five NFL seasons. The Eagles have crushed multiple draft classes in a row, and Roseman has delivered with some key free agent signings throughout his tenure, with guys like Malcolm Jenkins and Super Bowl MVP Nick Foles topping the list.
Like any NFL front office, Philly has had its share of colossal whiffs as well. This year has been no different.
Roseman’s decision to trade Haason Reddick and pay the unproven Bryce Huff $17 million per season? The book isn’t yet closed on that deal, but it certainly hasn’t aged well. This year’s Devin White situation — $3.5 million guaranteed to never suit up with the team — was another headscratcher.
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The Eagles have gotten such monster returns from the Zack Baun, Mekhi Becton and Saquon Barkley signings that the 2024 offseason will wash out as another win for Roseman and the Eagles. So what has been the franchise’s worst mistake since 2020?
NFL writer Bill Barnell of ESPN recently answered that question for all 32 NFL teams, and ranked them from worst to first. The Eagles, understandably, were ranked among the least impactful “biggest blunders,” coming in at No. 26 overall.
The team’s top whiff? Singing James Bradberry to a three-year, $38 million contract during the 2023 offseason. Here was Barnwell’s take:
After general manager Howie Roseman loaded up on cornerbacks in the 2024 draft, the Eagles flirted with moving Bradberry to safety during the summer before the veteran went down with a leg injury. He was expected to miss six to eight weeks, but there's no timetable for his return, and he's reportedly moved into a "player-coach role" with the team's defensive backs. He's a well-respected veteran and teammate, but the Eagles will end up paying $20 million for one disappointing season.
The Bradberry case is an intriguing one. You could argue Philly’s original contract, at one year, $7.3 million, was one of the team’s best moves in the last five seasons, because Bradberry gave the Eagles an All-Pro season and was a key defensive starter for a team that reached the Super Bowl.
The 2023 season was supposed to be Bradberry’s redemption tour, after a rough holding penalty in the SB killed the Eagles chances to get the ball back in an eventual loss to the Chiefs. His production fell off a cliff that year, and this past offseason was incredibly awkward, with the team deploying him at safety with the "B Team" during preseason games before effectively stashing him away for the season on injured reserve.
Eating $20 million in guarantees is a little rough for what the Eagles have gotten from Bradberry since that 2023 sseason. But the Huff contract — which includes a whopping $34M in guarantees — has a chance to blow that one out of the water if it continues at its current rate. In 10 game appearances for the Eagles, Huff has 10 total tackles and 2.5 sacks.
