Q. Did you guys hire Matt Patricia?
NICK SIRIANNI: I know there was a report out that that was said and we're trending in that direction. Nothing is final yet. We're trending in that direction, and so we'll see how that progresses, but it's trending in that direction, yes.
Q. It wasn't a report, it was on your website.
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, it was trending in that direction.
Of course you go through it. Like you do with anything, you go through and you talk to guys and make sure everybody is comfortable with it. Had conversations with Slay; obviously had conversations with Coach Patricia. I know that they'll -- that it will be a good working relationship for us when that happens.
Q. What can Matt Patricia offer to this team when that does happen?
NICK SIRIANNI: Obviously his resume speaks for itself. It gives you a great mind in there that's done it at the highest level, and so it gives you great ability to bounce ideas off of with the defensive staff.
Then also it gives me another former head coach that I can bounce ideas off of, as well, with things, which I think will be very helpful.
Q. How did the contract with Jalen come together so quickly?
HOWIE ROSEMAN: Yeah, I think you've got to give tremendous credit to Jalen, Nicole Lynn, the people internally, Jake Rosenberg, Bryce Johnson. Really just the way that everyone kind of made an effort to do this in a way that was really win-win, I think it's a heck of a deal for Jalen. I think it's a heck of a deal for the Eagles.
I think those are really the best kind of deals.
Really when I think about Jalen coming here, there's so many people that deserve a lot of credit for where we are right now. It starts with Jalen and his work ethic and his determination. From the first day we drafted him he had a vision of what kind of player he was going to be, and then just everyone who has been around him who's rallied around him.
It's a great story. We're certainly not at the end of the story. I think we're really at the beginning of the story.
Just really excited about doing this together with him and having him a part of this team and having that done in a way that really worked out well for both sides.
Q. Nick, did you ever get involved in the process?
NICK SIRIANNI: In the negotiations of the contract, no.
Q. What was your involvement in terms of -- they never said if you wanted this guy or not?
NICK SIRIANNI: Jalen? Yeah, obviously I wanted him.
HOWIE ROSEMAN: And he actually wanted to be here. He actually wanted to be here, too.
NICK SIRIANNI: No, that's not my job.
Q. What was your reaction?
NICK SIRIANNI: I was juiced. I was excited. Yeah, obviously to -- Jalen and I have a great relationship, and as a coach to player and player to coach, I really value those relationships that we have. Obviously his play has spoken for itself.
So you're getting a guy that you -- one of my favorite things is -- and I felt like when I left Indy I missed out on this -- there was a lot of guys that signed contracts in Indy after I left. I was like, man, I always really liked that part of it where guys get rewarded for what they've done, and I'm able to be there with them and be happy for them and still be able to coach them.
So that's kind of how I felt. Like yeah, this is -- I guess we've signed a couple guys to long-term deals since I've been here --
HOWIE ROSEMAN: Four last year and this season.
NICK SIRIANNI: That was special.
HOWIE ROSEMAN: The other thing about it, too, and this probably goes without saying, but the fact that Jeffrey was willing to do this and commit to it and give us the support to do it and the green light to do it a year early, this kind of contract and the trust that he had, not only in us but how excited he was to do it with Jalen.
Because that's hard to do. You're doing it early. You're doing it a year early. You obviously have the tag. You have all these things at your disposal, and him recognizing that this was the best thing to do for this team and this franchise. Just him doing that and him trusting us on both sides, he deserves a tremendous amount of credit.
Q. In terms of long-term planning, (regarding having a quarterback under contract.)
HOWIE ROSEMAN: Yeah, and I think that's part of the deal by doing it at the time that we did and by being able to work together to do things that were important to them and important to us, and for us it's about flexibility around them.
This is the ultimate team game, and he needs to have talented people around him. Jalen recognized that; Nicole recognized that, to be able to do this in a way that also gives us an opportunity to get good players.
And then we had kind of planned for this. We had picks, we went into free agency kind of planning for this, getting comp picks. We'll get four comp picks next year, so already -- it's kind of unusual, especially since I'm here I don't remember being in a situation where we have 12 picks before this year's draft for next year's draft. We'll probably have two after this draft.
But I think for us, obviously we get a chance to plan and we get a chance to work around it and build around him and some of the guys that we have on long-term contracts, and that's exciting. But we've got to continue to do the right thing.
I think we've had tremendous meetings leading up to this draft. I think we've got a really good process in place. That doesn't mean it's going to be perfect, but I'm excited about the possibilities for a week from today and certainly beyond.
Q. A draft question. There's a narrative that you guys will never take a running back or a linebacker in the first round. Obviously it's been a long time since the franchise has done that. What's your philosophy about running backs in the first round and linebackers, and what would it take for you to take one?
HOWIE ROSEMAN: I think the most important thing when you're picking in the first round, certainly when you're picking 10, is that you get a unique player. I think that there's so few unique players in any draft that if you start picking by position and not based on the quality of the talent, then you really get a chance -- so if you pick by position and you pick a player who's not any good, then it's not a good pick anyway.
I think the most important thing for us here is that we get -- we utilize this opportunity to get a unique player for our team. Certainly not planning to be picking at this point in the near future. That doesn't mean -- obviously things happen, but we're not planning for that. So we understand how important it is to get this right, and how do you get it right is you make sure you get a unique player.
I think that if you start saying, hey, we can only get a unique player, but it's got to be this position, you really narrow your options right there, and so just trying to be as open minded as possible about what that looks like and making sure that whoever we pick is somebody that we think can really impact the game.
Q. Howie, being able to keep the cap numbers as low as they are for Jalen, who gets credit or deserves credit for that, and is part of it ownership being willing to give cash up front?
HOWIE ROSEMAN: There's no doubt it all starts with Jeffrey and his commitment to provide us every resource possible on and off the field to make it a championship caliber football team. So it starts with him, and then we've got tremendous people inside this building who have great ideas and led in that department by Jake and Bryce.
I think sometimes they come to me and they've got to slow it down and talk to me like I'm in third grade and explain it to me so I can get on the phone and explain it to somebody else.
Understanding the ramifications of what we're doing, we're not pulling the wool over the eyes of anyone, any players or Jeffrey when we explain what we're doing here. We have a plan that doesn't just last for this year or next year. We're not trying to do anything where five or six years from now the Philadelphia Eagles won't be able to compete.
I think that we understand what we're doing and why we're doing it, and you've got to have a willingness with the players to also want to do things that's right for the team. Jalen and Nicole deserve a lot of credit, as well.
Q. What's the verdict in terms of research you've done on Jalen Carter, and do you feel comfortable drafting at No. 10?
HOWIE ROSEMAN: We talked a little bit about the people in this building, and there's no one we rely more on Dom DiSandro and we rely on him for things like that. At the end of the day he does a tremendous job of getting us all the information and putting us in a position to make decisions.
I think every decision is unique to the player and the situation, and so we'll have every piece of information at our disposal and be ready to make a decision on anyone who has a situation that's maybe a little bit outside the norm.
Q. Some general managers have publicly said that they feel better regarding the specific prospect Jalen Carter. After an in-person visit, would you say that's accurate or anything you could share on that end?
HOWIE ROSEMAN: Yeah, I'd say every situation is unique to that situation, and I think it's important that as an overall process that we don't really get into each and everyone's situation. I think that's where I'm most comfortable as opposed to just talking about each and every guy.
Again, I think that we will do everything to make sure that we know everything we possibly can about every one of these players and to be in a position that if the opportunity arises that we're in a position to make a decision that we feel really good about.
Q. You've always been really active when it comes to trades like during the draft and everything. Because you don't have like a mid-round or fifth or sixth round pick, does that make it more likely, less likely, plus the extra picks you have next year?
HOWIE ROSEMAN: Yeah, I think that it's dependent on the value of the pick that we have. By that I mean that, for instance, last year when we were picking in the third round, I don't know that we've had as many trade offers as we did on any pick as we did in that third-round pick, and I'm not saying it was for Nakobe or what it was, but we felt like we didn't want to move that pick because of Nakobe, and lat year we traded out fourth and two fifths to move up for Jordan.
I think the most important thing for us is not necessarily to win the draft in terms of how many picks we can possibly get and how many players that we can possibly pick, but getting the right players.
For us, there are going to be times where we're sitting there and our boards is going to have a big drop off and we'll have trade offer or move back, and we'll say, we think the value of this pick is better than getting some of these mid-picks. We've talked a lot in this room about when you're picking and the odds naturally cut off at a certain point in each round and you have a better chance of hitting on guys.
I think the second part of what makes it really important that we can prepare for, because you don't know what's going to happen in the course of a draft, is we've got to be prepared for undrafted free agency. Really proud of the job our scouts, our coaches, our football administration people did last year after the draft and adding -- we had four guys make our team after the draft, and those are extra picks.
When you look at the league where a majority of the players come from after the first couple rounds, it's undrafted free agency.
I think we've really got to have a good process in place for that. I think we do have a good process in conjunction with coach and his coaches.
So I think that's something we can prepare for and make sure that if we come out of this with six picks that we're also coming out with a bunch of players after the draft that we think can contribute to this football team.
Q. It feels like you guys don't devalue future picks as much as other teams around the league. How do you balance using future picks to move up or do whatever, add to your draft capital in the current year versus making sure you take the appropriate value of the future picks?
HOWIE ROSEMAN: Yeah, I think that the most important thing is the value of the player you're talking about trading for with the future pick. By that -- I mean if we're to be in the third round and we had a first-round grade on a guy, and we came to the conclusion that we would trade a next year two, it would be based on the fact of the grade of the player and the caliber of the player.
Again, not saying that we're going to do that, but I think it's more about every unique situation that you go into and that you look at. There won't be a situation where we'll be sitting there on day three if we kind of stay pat, stand pat, and we just say, hey, we've got to get a pick this year, so let's go trade our 4 for a 5.
It'll be based on the value of the board and the value of the positions and the players that are available to us, if that makes sense. I will have to take lots of walks, though, lots of walks.
Q. You had made some significant changes in the personnel department because you had to. This is your obviously post-Andy, the first draft post-Andy Weidl. Does your process change at all when you bring in new people? Do you try to keep everything --
HOWIE ROSEMAN: Process doesn't change. The process hasn't been perfect, but we continue to try to make the process better. I think when you bring in new people and you talk about the process, you ask what they can add to it from places they've been that they thought was good and that would add to it.
It's been really fun for me. I always like being around -- I love having the people that have been here for a long time. I love having continuity. But I also get excited about having new people around with new ideas and new ways of looking at things, challenges me, makes me better, so it's been that way throughout the process. People here who are in new roles, people we've brought in, and these guys are really, really talented people who are really adding to us and to our draft process, to our free agent process.
So I'm excited for the opportunity for them, and I think it goes both ways. Some of the things that we're doing may be different than the things they've been used to, and hopefully one day they'll take that with them when they get their jobs and their opportunities because I do think they're really talented people.
Q. You promoted Kevin Patullo to assistant head coach. What's the difference between assistant head coach and associate head coach and how has his position changed?
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, Kevin's role will stay very similar. I want to recognize Kevin for all the things he does to help me with day-to-day operations as a head coach. He's done a lot. Obviously Jemal does a lot, and I didn't want to call them both assistant head coaches, so associate head coach name was out there and I was able to use that. Some teams have both of those.
So Kevin's role changes none on the offensive side of the football. He's still going to do what he has been doing for the past two years.
Just wanted to recognize him for the job that he's done to help me with everything. So I couldn't do my job without Kevin, and so I really value him and wanted to make sure that I recognized him and we recognized him for the job that he's done these past two seasons and moving forward.
Q. (On Jalen) how do you make sure he stays healthy?
NICK SIRIANNI: Here's what I definitely wasn't doing. Jalen is on a rookie contract. I'm just going to be reckless and do whatever we want with him. We were very careful. I know he's gotten injured, but we didn't pay him more to do less. I'll say that.
Will we still think about how to protect him. Yeah, because that's our job to protect our quarterback. But Jalen does a lot of things really well, and we want to utilize the skills that he has so he can continue to play at a high level.
You know, to me, we'll continue to go about our business the same way we went about our -- we've went with our business, we'll always think about protecting him first, but we didn't pay him more to do less.
Q. Along those lines, it's obviously a massive investment for an organization. How did both of you view your roles in protecting that investment and then maximizing it?
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, we've just got to continue to do a good job of developing, as Howie -- I'll just answer for both of us. Howie is going to say, we're going to bring in guys to help Jalen do his job better, and I'm going to say the guys that Howie brings in, I'm going to do my best and our coaching staff is going to do our best to maximize their potential as far as how we develop them fundamentally and as a football player and putting them in positions to be able to make plays.
And then my job is to -- where was I on that? That's our job, is to do that.
Like I said, we're going to continue to do things -- we'll have new wrinkles this year, obviously. We're going to find ways to do the things that we've done better. How we can coach them better? How we can get our guys in position to make the plays better? We'll grow on the scheme that we've had to maximize Jalen's ability.
But make no mistakes about it. That's our job, right, to do those things. Jalen, the reason Jalen is in this position where he's signed this big contract is the fact that -- I've said this a million times -- nobody knows what Jalen Hurts' ceiling is. Why? Because he loves football. He's tough. He has high football IQ.
So the guys that have those things -- and he's competitive. The guys that have those things tend to reach their ceiling. He's just going to continue to rise, so he's a big part of this, too, because no man suddenly becomes different than his cherished thoughts and habits. He's going to continue to do the things he's done to this date because that's who he is. We all obviously have a part --
Q. Did he answer your part well enough? You've been a part of several franchise --
NICK SIRIANNI: He's asked two questions. Go.
Q. (Indiscernible) among rookies. How does that factor into the way you look at the draft in terms of a player contributing in year one?
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, you know, it was a unique situation. Every year is different. I don't think to myself, well, the last year the success that we had last year says that you can't get contributions from rookies. It just was a unique situation where our No. 2 -- really our first, second and third picks were behind veterans, with Cam being behind Jason and Nakobe being behind Kyzir and TJ and Jordan rotating reps. I think just think it was a unique year.
What's cool about that. Howie, you've said this. Now that we're getting almost two draft classes this year with those guys that haven't played, they didn't play, they played on special teams and contributed, but now they're coming in and ready to step in and make plays.
I'm excited about that, that you're almost combining two years' worth of guys that we're going to count on this year.
HOWIE ROSEMAN: The other thing is I think it was unique, and we don't take it for granted the health of our team last year. That was a unique situation.
I think for us to expect the same result as last year would be naïve at a minimum. So we've got to prepare to understand that for the amount of games that we want to play, it is a long season, and we need depth. We need guys who can play at a high level at a lot of positions.
When we drafted those guys last year, we certainly didn't feel like those three guys wouldn't have an opportunity to get on the field just because the history of all those positions is we've needed guys.
I think when we look at last year, instead of thinking about it as a trend, we've got to look at it like we've got to ensure that we have enough players that are available to play at a high level to get us where we want to, playing the kind of football we want to play in December, January, and hopefully February.
Q. You've been a part of several franchise quarterback deals since you've been with the Eagles; how have they informed you in terms of looking at Jalen's mental makeup and how he will be able to handle a significant amount of pay being the face of the franchise and doing all the necessary things that need to be done when you're in that role?
HOWIE ROSEMAN: Yeah, I don't want to get in the comparison game because I don't think that's fair. What I would say in terms of Jalen, the one thing you know about with Jalen is that the money is not going to change him. The money is not going to affect him. My first conversation with him after he signed that contract, he was just telling me how determined he was, and I know how hard he's working in the off-season. I know how much football matters to him. I know how much improving at football matters to him. I know how much he wants to be coached.
I know how important it is to try to deliver a championship to this city. All of us disappointed we fell short this year.
I don't have any doubt in my mind that giving Jalen this contract will not change the person that Jalen is. No doubt.
Q. You've talked in the past about how part of your evaluation -- part of your player evaluation is how a kid will handle a lot of money in his pocket.
HOWIE ROSEMAN: For sure.
Q. How does that inform something like this? Is that even a conversation, or with him do you just kind of --
HOWIE ROSEMAN: Yeah, it's the conversation. It goes like this: It's not going to affect Jalen. But we do discuss it. But it's like, we have no doubt.
NICK SIRIANNI: And we've been with the guy for three years, and you go about his daily habits and everything like that, you know the guy.
HOWIE ROSEMAN: Now of course he'll probably come in in a Ferrari (laughing).
Q. In the pre-draft process, how important to you is the process of trying to figure out what other teams are going to do?
HOWIE ROSEMAN: You know, I would say this: Nobody has any idea what we're going to do. I know that. And so for me to think that there's actually people in this league talking to people and saying, hey, I'm going to draft this guy at 10, but don't tell anyone, this is a huge game of poker, and all you want to affect is the outcome of your desired results.
Am I going to give you guys any answers today? No, not even a little bit. But I think the reality of it is anyone who's sitting there and saying, hey, I know exactly what's going to happen at pick 11 or pick 12 or pick 6 or 20, it's all a guess.
I promise you, when we come here next Thursday night late and Nick walks in and says something like, fire up or yells at all you guys like he yells at me sometimes - in a positive way - you guys will have probably five or six times when the commissioner announces a pick go, whoa, because at the end of the day everyone sees things differently. Just like everyone sees people differently, just like everyone sees food differently.
The things that we're seeing that we think are so clear and so transparent to another team are totally opposite. That's what makes the draft kind of fun. You see things and you go there and you go, there's no way that everyone is not going to see the first 10 picks exactly how we see them, and there will be a difference of opinion.
That's what's really interesting and unique about the draft process.
Q. How much time do you guys spend with the poker game of (indiscernible)?
HOWIE ROSEMAN: That was a lot of double negatives, but how many --
Q. Are you spreading this information out purposefully (indiscernible)?
HOWIE ROSEMAN: I will be honest with you. I never talk about our team. I never talk about our team. For me, I'm very consistent about that. I won't talk to other teams about our team. I won't talk to anyone about our team. When I go to my kids' sporting events, who are we going to draft -- maybe I should start saying stuff there, but I don't.
I think at the end of the day I say the same thing. There's a very small group of people who kind of can figure out what directions that we're thinking about depending on where it's going -- I say the same things I say to my kids. We've got two ears and one mouth. Let's be good listeners for the next couple weeks.
Q. Along those lines, what you were just talking about, how do you view the overall depth of this draft relative to previous drafts, and how many players have first round ranking would you say?
HOWIE ROSEMAN: Well, since we have two first round picks I'm not going to tell you how many have first-round grades. I'd say this: I never get caught up -- maybe I should. Maybe I'll look at this after the draft. Quality of this draft versus a previous draft, because I think we've got to be in the moment we're in right now. To sit there and go, man, this draft doesn't have this or draft, I wish it had that, it doesn't help us make good decisions for next weekend.
So I'm really focused on what are the opportunities that we have over the next weekend to improve our team, to get players that we think fit, and that we think can be a part of the culture and the team that we're trying to build over a period of time.
I'm not saying it as a cop-out, but I'm being honest. I think if you go back and you say this is worse and this and this, it just gives you excuses there, when at the end of the day we know there are going to be tremendous players who come out of this draft, and we've got to find those guys.
We've got to bring them to Philadelphia, and that's our challenge, and that's our job, and that's what we're going to try to do the best we can to do over the next week.
Q. The presence of Stout, will he focus more on (indiscernible) than technique?
HOWIE ROSEMAN: Definitely paraphrasing. I definitely didn't say it that way.
Q. I'll let you clarify. Is that unique to an offensive line, and what critical factors do you look for there?
HOWIE ROSEMAN: Yeah, I think the thing that we try to do is we tried to find guys who have unique traits that can make a difference in the game, and I think when you look at the best players on our team, they all have a unique skill set. They all have tools in their body that allow them to compete at the highest level and to play at a Pro Bowl, all-pro level to change games.
I think what you try to balance in this is obviously you want to evaluate the tape and you want the tape to be really good, but you want guys who have tools in their body to develop into elite players.
So when those things don't match, you've got to go back a little bit and figure out the reason why. When I say that about offensive linemen, when you look at our offensive line and you go left to right and you go, Jordan, and you go Landon and you go Kelce and you go Cam and you go Lane and obviously we've got other offensive linemen. Those are guys we've drafted high or have made the Pro Bowl. All of those guys have unique physical traits, like really unique physical traits.
They also combine that with incredible character, love of the game, passion for the game, and coachability. But that's what I meant when I said that.
I know that at the end of the day, some of these offensive linemen are so much better than some of these college players that they don't have to be technically sound, and we have phenomenal coaches on the staff. Certainly Stout is one of them. When you give our coaches guys with high football character, with unique physical traits, they will be developed.
That is one of the things I tell every player who's been in this building. If you expect a 21, 22, in this draft, 23, 24, 25, which is unique to this draft, year olds to come in and day one be finished products, you're going to set yourself up for disappointment.
We have to rally around these players. We have an unbelievable player development program. We have unbelievable coaches. We have unbelievable staff in this building. We have to rally around each and every player.
We will have a plan for each and every player to get them to be better. If we just go, hey, you're in Philadelphia now, it's on you, we're going to be disappointed. We have to take responsibility of making these players better.
Q. To follow up on that, considering how close you were this past season and aside from Jalen, how some of your core on both sides of the ball, the window could be getting a little bit smaller. How tempting does that make that next week to take a player who may be more ready to help you right now rather than somebody who has a higher ceiling?
HOWIE ROSEMAN: Yeah, I'd look at it a little differently. And maybe this is wrong, but I'd look at our roster right now and I'd say there isn't a spot that we have to have next week. That doesn't mean that we can't get better, because we can definitely get better and our goal is to continue to improve our football team, and that's not going to end next weekend.
That's not going to end -- I say this all the time: until the trade deadline and until even after that you have some cuts.
Roster building is a year-round job for us, and so this is a big part of it. But I look at it like we've got to ensure that we're getting the right players and that we're not forcing anything, and the mistakes are made when you force and you try to make something out of nothing.
We have barometers in place, I think, with the conversations that we have where we really try to test each other and try to play devil's advocate and make sure that we're not doing something just because we want to make something into something that maybe is not there.
Q. How does the wide receiver position affect Quez Watkins?
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, we've just added depth to the group. Quez, we've got a lot of confidence in Quez, and I know he's going to come back. I know he's hungry. He's determined. He feels like he didn't have his best season. He didn't get the opportunities -- we've talked about this. He didn't get the opportunities that he had in the past, and so it's just taking advantage of the opportunities that he has.
But Quez is our No. 3 receiver. There will be competition for it just like there was when Zach was here for different roles within that. But we're excited about Quez. I'm really excited with our new addition.
HOWIE ROSEMAN: Pronounce his name.
NICK SIRIANNI: I can't.
HOWIE ROSEMAN: I'm just going to say your words because I think they're important. You spend a tremendous amount of time trying to improve the offense, which I appreciate, and looking at tape, and you've come in to me multiple times and talked about -- nobody is down on Quez Watkins in this building.
We're excited about him and the skill set that he has. I'm not saying this to be combative in any way, but at the end of the day he's also played outside. A lot of the guys that we have, and you've talked about this with our staff, when we're talking about it. Like guys can multialign. Guys can play inside and out. I think that's one of the benefits of the group that we have.
Q. How would you say your approach to the draft and your preparation to the draft has changed over the years you've been GM, and is there any one kind of thing you've learned along the way that informs the way you do this?
HOWIE ROSEMAN: Yeah, I definitely think that along the way that my process has changed. Hopefully, I think for the best, but certainly the results will determine that.
Really the big part of it is including every part of the information, and I think that my biggest mistakes have been when you're kind of stubborn about something that you see and not looking at -- you've got to look at why will this fail, why won't this work, as opposed to all the -- we want to be glass-half-full evaluators here, but you've got to look at what is right in front of you that says this may not work out.
How do you do that? You've obviously got the subjective stuff, which is watching the tape and grading the player. You have the objective stuff is the testing. You have the psychological stuff, which is a big part. We've got a great group here, tremendous group of people who help with that. Then you've got really the team building, the resource allocation part of it.
I think one of the things I'm very fortunate is I get to hear all that information, and obviously the coaches are part of the subjective stuff, so I'm not including them on that in how they're used. When you put those factors together, it really -- it helps you make better decisions. Again, we're talking about 21, 22, there are going to be mistakes, we know the rates on that, but we're trying to make as good a decisions as we possibly can.
Sometimes it pays to take chances, whether it's incredible tools in their body to become elite players, but sometimes it's also okay -- I've had this new, out of respect for the Phillies - go Phillies - is you can score a lot of runs when you hit a lot of doubles. My kids are all playing baseball, so I must be in a little baseball moment there.
I think that's okay. Like you don't always have to swing for the fences, and I think if you keep hitting doubles you'll keep rounding the bases, keep scoring runs, you'll build a really good football team.
Q. When it comes to the end of the draft when you're in the back end of the first round, that fifth-year option, how does it affect it from a value standpoint versus those top few picks in the second round?
HOWIE ROSEMAN: Well, I think the fifth-year option, obviously it buys you a year. I think when you're talking about really good players and you're talking about trying to keep your team together, it gives you an opportunity to have an extra year of contract value. I think that's incredibly important as you look at it.
It's valued, and I think those are decisions that you make about whether you want to come back into the first round and get a fifth year on a guy or what the value you're getting to come out of the first round.
Q. If I can follow up on something you said (indiscernible) how does that factor into the way you look at players as far as their college production and their age?
HOWIE ROSEMAN: Yeah, I think you're a product of your experience, and I think certainly I've had experience with older players. You have to kind of balance the fact that when you're 23, 24 you're more physically developed than you are when you're 18 or 19, and so when you're playing guys that are four or five years older at that time in their life, I mean, you're talking about probably 20 percent increase in strength and power, and so you're not necessarily judging the same level of competition.
You've got to take that into account when you're drafting guys and understand what is the ceiling of these guys. Our performance staff does a tremendous job of talking about where guys can get and where we think we can take guys.
But it's definitely a factor.
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