Howie Roseman understands the C.J. Gardner-Johnson trade criticism: ‘The premise is fair’

PALM BEACH, Fla. — Howie Roseman said he understood the criticism of the C.J. Gardner-Johnson trade — some of which, The Inquirer learned, hasn’t come exclusively from outside the NovaCare Complex.

The Eagles general manager acknowledged that on paper — dealing the established safety for, in essence, a player who is very much a projection — the trade wasn’t an even one.

“The premise is fair,” Roseman said Monday at the annual league meeting.

But in an offseason that has seen the Eagles wave goodbye to five starters from their Super Bowl-winning team — as the GM juggled a budget crunch — assessing the Gardner-Johnson trade to the Houston Texans required a wider lens, Roseman explained.

“I think Chauncey did a great job for us, both the years that he was with us, obviously making the Super Bowl … with him as our starting safety,” he said. “Really, when you look at our team and you look at kind of the amount of highly paid players who’ve earned their contracts, we’ve got eight guys who are making $15 million [a year] or more.

“We have from the 2022-2024 drafts … eight starters who are on the Super Bowl team. None of those guys have long-term contracts. In those drafts, probably have five or six players that will be competing for starting jobs.”

» READ MORE: From free agency to Dallas Goedert, five takeaways from Howie Roseman’s owners meetings media session

Unlike the other starters who left in free agency, Gardner-Johnson was under contract through 2026. Roseman will save about $8.5 million in cash this season and nearly $20 million over the final two years of the three-year, $27 million deal the safety signed last offseason.

But it’s not as if the 27-year-old was among the highest paid at his position. (He ranks 18th among safeties in average annual salary, according to overthecap.com.) And, again, there was no imperative for the Eagles to move Gardner-Johnson, especially when the return — guard Kenyon Green — has yet to come remotely close to warranting the first-round pick Houston expended on him three years ago.

According to Roseman, for the Eagles to remain fiscally sound and avoid some of the mistakes they made after their first Super Bowl, sacrifices had to be made.

“We’re in a situation right now where we have to make tough decisions. … We have to make some priorities,” Roseman said at The Breakers Resort. “And from our perspective, that was one of the few positions that we had drafted a young player fairly high, and that player really hasn’t had an opportunity to play again. He’s got to earn it.”

That safety — Sydney Brown — is entering his third season after the Eagles selected him in the third round of the 2023 draft. He played sparingly on defense in his rookie year before suffering a torn ACL in the season finale.

Brown missed the first five games of last season as he recovered from the knee injury, and when he returned he was primarily used on special teams. His ability to play alongside returning starting safety Reed Blankenship is as much of a projection as slotting Green into the right guard spot.

Roseman intimated as much and will likely add competition.

There was no denying, however, that Gardner-Johnson would be tough to replace, particularly on game days. The Eagles missed his energy in 2023, something Roseman conceded a year ago at the league meetings when he said “we were looking to regain our swagger and mentality” by bringing him back after he spent an injury-marred year with the Detroit Lions.

And that was a primary reason cited by two Eagles sources as to why they weren’t completely on board with the move. Gardner-Johnson’s “toughness” was another trait one of the sources offered in defense of keeping him.

Both sources emphasized that there are always differences of opinion on personnel and that Roseman, who has all the information, must ultimately make a decision that he feels is best for the franchise.

Texans coach DeMeco Ryans, who played middle linebacker for the Eagles from 2012-15, said Gardner-Johnson’s behavioral intangibles were what stood out when he watched film of the safety.

“The thing that instantly jumps off is his passion, his intensity for the game. I love that,” Ryans said Monday. “I think it fits right into our style of ball. I think just his veteran presence will also help our younger guy, Calen Bullock, back there.”

Gardner-Johnson’s emotion has given him the reputation as one of the more annoying players in the NFL. The Eagles certainly didn’t mind that part of the equation, although his mouth led to a costly ejection in the loss at Washington in December.

The bigger issue, as it related to Gardner-Johnson’s trash-talking, came when he directed it toward his teammates. He wasn’t always popular in the locker room. Sometimes players with hard edges are needed, but they can become too jagged over time.

Houston will be Gardner-Johnson’s fifth stop — with two separate one-year stays in Philadelphia — in the last five seasons.

“Every guy that comes to our building, it’s always a clean slate,” Ryans said. “I don’t know all the ins and outs of what happened at every spot, why you’re on multiple teams. But to me, it really doesn’t matter because I treat everyone [with] the same respect, open arms when you come into our building.”

The Eagles will welcome Green into the fold, but he also comes with baggage. The 15th overall pick in the 2022 draft started only 23 games over his first three seasons. He missed all of 2023 with a shoulder injury and was benched in the second half of last season.

Ryans said that leaving an environment in which Green was being labeled a bust by most Texans fans for one with relatively low expectations could benefit the 24-year-old guard.

“You’re getting a young player. This guy is a physical, tough player … in the run game,” Ryans said. “He’s a young player who’s definitely ascending. Came off some injuries. He’s improved. He’s worked himself back to get into really good shape. I think his best ball is still ahead.”

The Eagles did a lot of predraft work on the former Texas A&M star, according to Roseman. Offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland has successfully taken players with obvious raw skill who struggled with other teams — most recently with recently departed right guard Mekhi Becton — and gotten more out of them.

» READ MORE: Eagles trade is a ‘breath of fresh air’ for Kenyon Green. Can Jeff Stoutland’s tutelage revive his career?

But there have been misses, as well (see: guard Chance Warmack).

“Kenyon would be the first one to say that he hasn’t had the start to his career that he thought he should,” Roseman said. “And just because maybe we’ve had success with getting some guys who have talent in their body — and just talking about the offensive line here, in particular — and getting them to play at a high level, that doesn’t guarantee success for the next guy.

“That’s got to be earned, that’s got to be earned through hard work … [and] performance on the field.”

As it stands now, the returning Tyler Steen is penciled in ahead of Green at right guard.

But as Roseman made clear when asked about the exodus of free agents like defensive tackle Milton Williams, outside linebacker Josh Sweat, and Becton, the offseason is far from over. There are still the draft, the trade market, and other opportunities to add to the roster up to and into next season.

It’s rare that the Eagles GM trades from a position of weakness, however. And because the Eagles have spent more cash than any other team over the last decade, Roseman found himself having to explain jettisoning Gardner-Johnson.

The safety brought a lot to the Eagles. He generated turnovers — 12 total interceptions in two seasons. He delivered big hits. And, yes, he carried with him swagger. But perhaps most important, he won.

“I’m excited to work with him. I’m excited to see what he brings to our team,” Ryans said. “You’re talking about a guy now with Super Bowl experience. To add guys like that to our team and where we’re trying to get to can only enhance … in terms of what you want as a team.”

The Eagles know as much. They also know Gardner-Johnson as well as any team.