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Eagles' Howie Roseman leaps at chance to revise comments on Eric Rowe

When Eagles de facto general manager Howie Roseman and player personnel vice president Joe Douglas appeared on the 94WIP morning show Monday, Roseman couldn't wait to be asked about something he said a few weeks ago about discarded cornerback Eric Rowe.

Roseman has weathered a lot of negative response to saying that one of the reasons Rowe was traded to the New England Patriots was that the Eagles had determined they wouldn't re-sign him after the 2018 season, when his rookie deal ran out.

This seemed quite a bold projection, given that Rowe had been a 2015 second-round pick and a starter down the stretch that season, and that 2018 was three seasons distant when the trade was made. The fact that Rowe became a steady contributor for the Patriots, intercepting Ben Roethlisberger on Sunday as New England defeated the Steelers in the AFC Championship Game and advanced to the Super Bowl — well, that only intensified reaction from fans and reporters who had been puzzled by Rowe's Eagles demise.

Nearly eight minutes into the interview, Roseman said, unprompted: "You've got to give me a chance to correct my answer on Eric Rowe from that press conference, because here's what happened: Yesterday, my 9-year-old son said, 'Dad, I didn't really understand your answer from that press conference.' So, when a 9-year-old boy doesn't understand the answer, it's probably a problem. I said: 'The reason you don't understand was because it wasn't coherent.' "

Roseman then praised New England coach Bill Belichick as "maybe the best developer of defensive backs in the history of the NFL." He said that Rowe was behind four other corners plus safety Malcolm Jenkins on the Eagles' corner depth chart as the 2016 season began, and that the 2018 fourth-round pick that could become a third that the Patriots were offering seemed like "a pretty good value."

Roseman then indicated he might have undervalued Rowe, talking about the discomfort of sitting and watching former Eagles play well for other teams. "You want to hit as many as you can," he said. "...  At the same time, you've got to  get guys that fit your scheme, that make sense for the Philadelphia Eagles."

Jim Schwartz did not seem nearly as impressed with Rowe's skillset as former defensive coordinator Bill Davis had been. Schwartz clearly preferred the brash aggressiveness of 2016 seventh-round pick Jalen Mills.

Roseman denied that he jettisoned Rowe because Rowe was a Chip Kelly pick. He offered up middle linebacker Jordan Hicks, the Eagles' third-round pick in the 2015 Kelly-led draft, as proof that he values some Kelly players.

Overall, as Roseman and Douglas prepared to head to Mobile, Ala., for this week's Senior Bowl practices and Saturday game, Roseman seemed to be emphasizing the contribution of Douglas, hired last year from the Bears after more than a decade in the successful Baltimore Ravens personnel operation.