Why An Eagles Reunion With Joe Douglas Is Unlikely

The Eagles' are well-stocked in the front office for now.

Former New York Jets general manager Joe Douglas. / Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

PHILADELPHIA - Joe Douglas is out as the general manager of the New York Jets and in the uber-provincial world that is Philadelphia you know what's next.

'The Eagles should bring back Douglas,' is the rallying cry for many.

Douglas was the team's vice president of player personnel from 2016 to 2019 where his work with GM Howie Roseman helped build the only Super Bowl team in franchise history during the 2017 season.

Douglas' personnel acumen with the Eagles is what got him on the Jets' radar in the first place but the reunion is unlikely for several reasons.

Roseman used the exits of Douglas and other personnel executives like Douglas' former right-hand man in Philadelphia and replacement Andy Weidl, as well as execs Andrew Berry, Catherine Raiche, Ian Cunningham, and Brandon Brown to reimagine the Eagles' football operations and scouting departments.

The setup now includes two assistant GMs -- Alec Halaby and Jon Ferrari -- as well as two VPs of Player Personnel: Chuck Walls (tilted toward the pro side) and Alan Wolking (tiled toward the college side) as well as senior director of scouting Brandon Hunt and senior director of college scouting Anthony Patch.

Adding to the depth of the front office at the NovaCare Complex are two senior personnel directors and advisors to Roseman: former Jacksonville GM Dave Caldwell and former Denver VP of player personnel Matt Russell.

The best fit for Douglas in the short term would be as a third senior personnel advisor. Owner Jeffrey Lurie is not shy to encourage and pay for additional front-office talent.

That said, Roseman likes his current setup better than the one he had when Douglas was in Philadelphia, and remember that Douglas is still getting paid by the Jets so taking another job could affect that. Also, there was a bit of a disconnect by the time Douglas left for Florham Park, although five years is plenty of time to get over something like that.

If the well-regarded Eagles front office does suffer more attrition during the next hiring cycle and Douglas realizes he needs to rebuild the resume before getting another shot at a GM job perhaps revisiting the idea of a reunion becomes more realistic.

An immediate return in-season when everything is going smoothly for Philadelphia makes little sense.

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