Super Bowl

Eagles Are Still Humble and Hungry Because of Doug Pederson and Howie Roseman

A few years ago, if I would have told you that Howie Roseman and Doug Pederson would both be given contract extensions on the same day and the moves were met with resounding cheers, you wouldn't have believed me. 

You would have told me I was crazy. 

But that day happened Sunday. The Eagles' head coach and de facto GM were extended through the 2022 season in a decision that was "simple," as owner Jeff Lurie called it. 

It was a no-brainer. 

And that's just so amazing to think that these two guys helped the Eagles win a Super Bowl and are now considered indispensable. Because a couple years ago, they each had more than their fair share of doubters. 

That's probably why they've shown so much humility since winning it all. 

"I think they're both, at this point, very, very humble," Lurie said on Sunday night. "How they've handled success since Feb. 4 has been something very wonderful to behold. I think they both treat it like we just finished the season 7-9 or 8-8 and we can do much better than we did."

Remember when the Eagles hired Pederson? 

The hot names were Adam Gase and Ben McAdoo. Heck, some folks even wanted them to hire Tom Coughlin. But, instead, the Eagles hired the guy who was once one of the worst starting quarterbacks the team ever put on the field. They hired that guy. 

And then everything Pederson did as a rookie head coach was under a microscope. He made some mistakes, he made some questionable decisions, but still managed to finish 7-9 and navigated the Eagles through some tough times. But he didn't convince everyone until last year. Then he really convinced everyone. He's not going anywhere soon.

You'll also remember a time when Roseman wasn't exactly the most beloved guy in the city either. 

He rose up the ranks to become an extremely young GM, but then lost his power struggle with Chip Kelly and spent a year away from football decisions. Roseman has talked a lot about how much that year off has influenced him in his general manager-like role. 

So if the Eagles really are still hungry and humble, we know where it starts: with the two guys who probably still feel like they have something to prove. 

"There's no sense of, ‘We just won something gigantic, we're world champions and we'll let it fly.' Not at all," Lurie said. "They're both, from Day 1, we had a meeting in February, right before the parade, we had meetings on offense, defense and overall football operations. We had everybody there and I have to tell you, the culture of the coaching staff and the football operations staff was, ‘This was really great. Let's dig in. It's now Day 1."

It's also a day after the day you probably thought would never come. But Doug and Howie are here to stay. And everyone is happy about it. 

More on the Eagles

Copyright CSNPhily
Contact Us