Howie Roseman Should Win NFL's Executive of the Year

Here's a closer look at why the Eagles GM deserves to win, and why he might be the only one to win a postseason honor

Ed Kracz/SI Fan Nation Eagles Today

The awards handed out at the end of the season may not reflect just how good of a year the Eagles had.

There is really only one shoo-in, and that is general manager Howie Roseman, who should be the runaway winner for The Sporting News Executive of the Year.

It shouldn’t even be close.

Jacksonville’s Trent Baalke made some moves that helped the Jaguars in the playoffs after the Urban Meyer debacle last year. 

To me, that’s more on Doug Pederson, who should win the Associated Press Coach of the Year, though it was another coach in the AFC South, Tennessee’s Mike Vrabel who won it last year.

Sure, GM Chris Grier did some nice things in Miami, bringing in Tyreek Hill probably at the top of the list, and Kansas City’s Brett Veach could get some votes, as could Seattle’s John Schneider.

Roseman, though, put together a roster that improved by five wins from a season ago and went from a No. 7 seed in the 2021 playoffs to a No. 1 seed this year.

Everyone knows the players he brought in, starting with a shrewd draft night trade for A.J. Brown and another one at the end of summer for Chauncey Gardner-Johnson. In between, he landed James Bradberry, who was the perfect complement to Darius Slay, and Kyzir White, who was the perfect complement to T.J. Edwards.

Roseman began free agency by signing Haason Reddick. What a home run that was.

When the team needed some help on the defensive line, he found a way to bring in veteran Super Bowl winners Ndamukong Suh and Linval Joseph.

Brandon Graham was asked by SI Eagles Today last month what he thought the reason was the Eagles were back in the Super Bowl hunt after winning it just five years ago and after everything crumble quickly thereafter.

“Because of the offseason Howie put together,” said Graham. “The guys he brought in. We have good guys that came in.”

Then there’s the cherry on top – the GM acquired the New Orleans Saints’ first-round pick, which is No. 10 in this spring's draft. He also landed the Saints' second-round pick in 2024.

So, the Eagles own the No. 1 seed and a top-10 pick.

Can you say the rich get richer?

How many teams have gone just five years between No. 1 seeds with a different coach and a different quarterback?

The Eagles are one after doing it in 2017 with Doug Pederson and Carson Wentz/Nick Foles and again in 2022 with Nick Sirianni and Jalen Hurts.

Roseman won the executive of the year award in 2017. If he does it a second time, he will become the fourth GM this century to have done it twice.

The others: Scott Pioli (Patriots, 2003 and 2004), Ted Thompson (Packers, 2007 and 2011), and Thomas Dimitroff (Falcons, 2008 and 2010).

Bill Polian won it in 2009 with the Colts and it was his sixth time being honored and he has done it with three different teams. He won with the Bills in 1988 and 1991, with the Panthers in 1995 and 1996, and with the Colts in 1999 and 2009.

As for awards handed out by The Associated Press, Jalen Hurts had a terrific season, going 14-1 with 35 total touchdowns, but Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes probably will be MVP.

Reddick was phenomenal with 16 sacks and was part of a defensive unit that put up a team-record 70 sacks, more sacks than any other team had since the 1989 Vikings, who had 71, but Nick Bosa is the probable DPOY.

Doug Pederson should be the Coach of the Year, though Nick Sirianni should be in the top three.

Even Comeback Player of the Year may go to Arizona's J.J. Watt over Brandon Graham.

Graham, of course, came off an Achilles injury suffered in Week 2 and had a career season with 11 sacks.

Watt, though, is retiring and that may garner some votes, especially after he shredded his shoulder after seven games and returned to post 12.5 sacks in the final season of a Hall of Fame career.

Ed Kracz is the publisher of SI.com’s Fan Nation Eagles Today and co-host of the Eagles Unfiltered Podcast. Check out the latest Eagles news at www.SI.com/NFL/Eagles or www.eaglesmaven.com and please follow him on Twitter: @kracze.