The Philadelphia Eagles have some big decisions to make in the offseason that might include losing some key players on both sides of the ball.
Eagles general manager Howie Roseman knows this reality all too well, having built this roster, and he might have to do some teardown. After a disappointing 11-6 season with all the money they spent on players, the formation of this roster is going to look a bit different in 2026.
Philly has some big free agents, including Jaelan Phillips, Nakobe Dean, and Reed Blankenship, who are going to force Roseman to make tough calls. He acknowledged this as much in the Eagles' end-of-year press conference, where he pretty much told reporters and fans what's about to happen.
"As you get better, you have a natural arc of the team," Roseman said via The Athletic's Zach Berman. 'I think that when you look at our team, we draft a lot of offensive players, we re-signed a lot of offensive players, we drafted a lot of defensive players that were young on rookie contracts. There's natural transition in what we do.
With that, you're going to have to make sacrifices. That’s on me to make sure that the sacrifices we make are filled in with really good players again. I'm proud, since coach has been here, of our first- and second-day draft success."
Roseman knows the rebuild might start in the NFL Draft
This has been the common theme with Roseman over the last five years. It started with the offense selecting Jalen Hurts, DeVonta Smith, Landon Dickerson, Cam Jurgens, and Tyler Steen during that time to help build the youthful foundation.
Over the last few years, it's been the defense's turn, with nine of the main starters on defense having been drafted since 2022. Those top guys include Jalen Carter, Jordan Davis, Dean, Quinyon Mitchell, and Cooper DeJean.
Now, the Eagles will have to go back to building the offense through the draft. With impending questions about A.J. Brown's future, if a trade happens with him, the Eagles will be strapped financially and will not be able to do anything in free agency outside of the one-year deals they did last offseason.
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Some of those key free agents mentioned earlier most likely won't be back, so Roseman will be in the position to use his scouting magic and find top talent through the NFL Draft, as he has done so well over the years.