INDIANAPOLIS — Philadelphia Eagles general manager Howie Roseman would love to maintain a simple approach to the offseason minefield that is free agency. One problem.
“It’s complicated,” Roseman said Thursday at the 2014 NFL Scouting Combine inside Lucas Oil Stadium.
Particularly, the Eagles are sweating the future of two players coach Chip Kelly considers starters: unrestricted free agents Jeremy Maclin and Riley Cooper. From a 10,000-foot view, the resources are in the coffers to make it work. Upon tighter inspection, retaining one or both would require sliding chips from another designated need area (hello, safety).
“You have guys on our roster who we drafted and who we like,” Roseman said. “You can only put a limited amount of resources at a particular position. We also want to consider what’s available in this draft. For us, it’s important to make these decisions during calm times. We set prices for guys, you try to stick with those and have walk-away numbers. It’s hard to kind of figure out the market until you’re in it.”
Cooper recovered from a self-created tumultuous summer with a breakout season, averaging 17.8 yards per catch with eight touchdowns and 47 total receptions for 835 yards. Maclin led the Eagles with 69 receptions for 857 yards and seven touchdowns in 2012, then missed last season. He suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee in July.
Maclin said last week he’ll be ready for training camp and hopes it will be with the Eagles. He is just 25 years old with 57 career starts, experience that is difficult to overlook.
To that end, Roseman said wide receivers are a challenging group to peg in Kelly’s system.
“Because they get the ball so much, they’re not asked to do the dirty work,” Roseman said. “For us, it’s going to be a well-rounded guy who’s going to be able to do the little things.”
Roseman said quarterback Nick Foles went into February looking to get better. Last year, he focused on improving his footwork and had a historically prolific season — 29 touchdowns and two interceptions — to put the Eagles in the playoffs as NFC East champions.
But Kelly said nothing is guaranteed for Foles, a 24-year-old entering his third season after being drafted in the third round of the same draft that produced Russell Wilson a few picks earlier.
Roseman said that’s not a slight, but a philosophical mantra.
“Everyone needs to be pushed a little bit,” Roseman said. “It’s not an indictment of anyone at a particular position. Internally we’re talking about that. Let’s try to make a good player great, let’s try to make a great player historic.”