Howie Roseman has proven himself time and time again to be at the top of the game as an NFL general manager. The Philadelphia Eagles as a whole are a well-run organization because Jeffrey Lurie provides him with ample resources to build a winning product.
Owner-provided resources come down to cash spending. And in this area, the Eagles consistently rank at or near the top of the league. Currently, Over The Cap has them fifth in cash spending for 2026. But real roster investments go beyond cash spending. And they go well beyond cap hits, which are merely accounting tricks.
In an ongoing series on Substack, I look at total roster allocations by division, comparing cash spending and draft pick investment, normalized to a dollar figure to see which teams are making a real effort to build the best possible roster and which are skimping.
Eagles roster investment is strong - but not the most in the NFC East
With large cash investments, it makes sense that the Eagles have a strong overall asset allocation in their roster. But when draft capital is added in, they fall behind two other teams in the NFC East this year. But the gap is by the slimmest of margins.
Philadelphia's total resource investment for 2026 comes to $486.1 million. That's $3.9 million shy of Dallas and $11.8 million behind New York. Washington trails the rest of the division, but again by a small gap. The NFC East truly is a division where every team is committed to winning, creating an exciting outlook on this year.
Eagles' Draft Priorities
As part of the analysis in the Substack article, I look at how draft resources are distributed across each team's roster. The radar chart for Philadelphia draft resources shows a heavy dedication to the defensive side of the ball, with only two position groups (secondary and defensive line) clearing $25 million of investment for this year's roster.
Dating back to 2023, seven out of their 11 draft picks in the first three rounds have been used on defensive players. And that's with this year's top three picks all being offensive players.
Where Philadelphia Spends
In my opinion, what makes Howie Roseman so special is his ability to round out his roster. While other general managers dedicate resources to a specific area or two, almost to a fault, Roseman is able to keep his roster free of weak links. The Eagles only top the rest of the division in just two position groups, while ranking last in only one area (a very surprising one!).
Quarterback and running back are where the Eagles lead the way. They have over $55 million invested in the signal-caller position this year. Almost all of that is tied up in Jalen Hurts' $51 million salary this year. Veteran spending drives their running back position as well. $17 million of their $24 million resource allocation comes from Saquon Barkley's pay this year.
They are second in resource spend at receiver, offensive line, linebacker, and special teams, and third in spending in their secondary and at tight end. But the shocking part of the entire analysis is that the rest of the NFC East is outspending Roseman on resources dedicated to the defensive line.
Now, Roseman keeps it close with most of the division. The Eagles' $111.6 million investment is less than $10 million off of both Washington and Dallas. But New York has taken line investment to a whole other level at $152.6 million. And this is where the magic of Roseman really separates him from the pack.
Resource investment and allocation are just two pieces of the puzzle. The third piece is just as important, if not more. And that's hit rate. The investment in Moro Ojomo is just $4.5 million this year. But his impact is so much more than that. The same can be said for Jalen Carter ($23.6 million investment between his draft pedigree and salary), Jalyx Hunt ($7.8 million), and Nolan Smith Jr. ($15.4 million). Almost every one of those players is likely to produce at a higher level than the investment in them this year.
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And that's the key. When an organization combines a heavy investment in resources with a strong personnel team that can maximize those investments, you get a team that is perpetually strong, or as I like to call them, the Philadelphia Eagles.
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