Over 1000 days ago, Howie Roseman and Doug Pederson were standing at the Philadelphia Art Museum steps, looking down at the tens of thousands of screaming Eagles fans. They had done the impossible and brought a championship to Philadelphia.
Hopes were high. Their MVP-caliber quarterback would be coming back and the team looked ready to continue their dominance.
Fast-forward to 2020, and the team has since transformed into a heap of overpaid contracts, underperforming stars, and draft busts. There are plenty of people to point fingers at, but the two most obvious are Roseman and Pederson.
Both of them have shown incompetence over the past few years that have culminated into this nightmare season. These numerous errors by the two are both obvious and less evident, by are these enough to warrant firings? Or will they stick around and try to regroup the team next year?
Roseman’s Faults Are Clear
It’s extremely easy to explain why Roseman is on the hot seat. His drafting has become more inept following the Super Bowl. 2019 second-rounder JJ-Arcega Whiteside looks to be on the outs. The team still doesn’t know how to utilize Jalen Hurts, this year’s second round pick.
Andre Dillard, the supposed heir to Jason Peters, is now a huge question mark following injury and Jordan Mailata’s rise.
Meanwhile, Rasul Douglas and Syndey Jones, two former top picks, are flourishing after being cut by the team.
Even Roseman’s supposed strength, his cap management, has become a weakness. His decision to invest large amounts of money into the defensive line has left other positions barren and struggling. Sprinkle in other odd moves- Jake Elliot’s five-year, $19 million for example- and Roseman has proven he may not be the knight in shining armor the city once thought he was.
Dougie P’s slide is less straight forward.
Doug Pederson’s Play Calling Conundrum
It’s impossible to tell what he is as a coach. He’s a motivator, that’s for sure- The team has managed to come back from deficits to make the playoffs the last two years despite numerous injuries. But his playcalling is horrendous.
Even worse is that Pederson refuses to acknowledge this, which NBC Sports’ Dave Zangaro covered following the loss to the Giants two weeks ago:
“I feel good about the plays that have been called,” Pederson said. “I even looked at the game yesterday and felt I was in rhythm.”
Playcalling has been a consistent criticism for this team dating back to 2018, and it has not gotten better despite numerous offensive coaching changes. There’s no creativity, they go away from what’s working, and the aggressiveness has become nonsensical.
The offense has significantly declined every year following their Super Bowl winning season.
If Pederson still doesn’t believe he’s part of the problem, it should concern Jeffrey Lurie.
This then brings up another question: If Pederson is unable to call plays and needs good coordinators and coaches in order to succeed, is he really a good head coach?
There are other problems with Pederson, of course. His refusal to criticize players is confusing. You don’t have to look too far down broad street to see that the Flyers’ Alain Vigneault called out Claude Giroux’s play.
That team is coming off a great playoff run, and this team is floundering with a 3-6-1 record. Wentz’s 14 TD/14 INT/73.3 QBR line should piss Pederson off. He should demand better of him at the podium and say that Wentz’s job is on the line. But the intensity just isn’t there.
Should Roseman and Pederson Be Fired?
Out of the two, Roseman seems the more likely for a firing following the conclusion of the season. His drafting mistakes can no longer be ignored, and the draft is going to become extremely important as the team looks toward the future (if a rebuild isn’t coming, than a retooling is).
It’s no secret that Roseman is highly favored by Lurie, but one has to assume that adoration will eventually dissolve the worse the team performs.
Pederson’s ego is what could potentially cost him his job. If he would be willing to surrender his playcalling, then he’ll likely get extra time.
Of course, the odds that neither of them are fired are also realistic. Maybe the Eagles will cite 2020 as being a “tough year” and that the team didn’t have the necessary time to prepare or something of that matter.
If they do go that route, they’ll only be lying to themselves.
However, Lurie is a solid owner who, like the fans, is impatient and wants to win. He hasn’t hesitated to fire a winning coach before. Chip Kelly was shown the despite a 26-21 record, and he promptly flamed out in San Francisco.
If Lurie has the same gut feeling about Pederson and Roseman that he had for Kelly, then it’s time to make a move.