Roseman's fascinating thoughts on drafting a 1st-round RB

He didn’t say no.

At least that's something.

We all know Howie Roseman has never drafted a linebacker or running back in the first round in his 12 years as Eagles general manager. And going back before him, the Eagles haven’t taken a linebacker in the first round since Jerry Robinson in 1979 or a running back since Keith Byars in 1986.

MORE: Roseman explains how Hurts deal came together so quickly

Since the Eagles drafted Robinson out of UCLA with the 21st pick 44 years ago, 143 linebackers have been drafted, and every other NFL team has taken at least one. 

Since the Eagles drafted Byars out of Ohio State with the 10th pick 37 years ago, 102 running backs have been drafted, and only the Washington Football Team hasn’t taken one. Their last 1st-round running back was Ray McDonald in 1967.

Some believe Roseman will never take a running back or off-ball linebacker in the first round, no matter how talented they are just because he devalues the position so much. And it's a sound theory.

Roseman has seemed fairly predictable in the first round over the years. Five defensive linemen, three offensive linemen, one quarterback and three receivers.

Would he ever take something else? Speaking hypothetically of course, Roseman said absolutely.

“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,” he said. 

“I think that there are 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 (to miss). So if you pick by position and you pick a player who's not any good, then it's not a good pick anyway.”

This of course is more relevant than ever because one of the most intriguing running backs we’ve seen in years will likely be there when the Eagles pick at No. 10 and could very possibly be available in the middle of the round if Roseman is able to trade down.

Former Texas star Bijan Robinson is an elite runner, a tremendous receiver and the sort of explosive, versatile weapon that would look pretty darn good alongside A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith and Jalen Hurts. 

Once upon a time, running backs were routinely taken in the first round. 

In the 1950s, 40 running backs were taken with top-10 picks (and 48 in the much-shorter first round). In the 60s, those numbers were 30 top 10 picks and 43 in the first round. Then 17 and 44 in the 1970s, 17 and 50 in the 1980s, 12 and 34 in the 1990s, then just 7 and 32 in the 2000s and 7 and 19 in the 13 years since 2010.

Among those 1st-round picks was current Eagle Rashaad Penny, whose extensive injury history is an example why running backs just don’t get drafted early.

The only running back taken in the top 10 in the last five drafts is Saquon Barkley, who the Giants picked second in 2018.

READ: Roseman's hilarious explanation why the Eagles drafted Kelce

This is only the fourth time since 2001 the Eagles have had a top-10 pick and only the second time in the last 50 years they’ve had one after a winning season.

It's a rare opportunity and Robinson is a rare talent.

“I think the most important thing for us here is that we utilize this opportunity to get a unique player for our team,” Roseman said. 

“Certainly not planning to be picking at this point in the near future. That doesn't mean (we won’t) - 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 get a unique player, but it's got to be this position,’ you really narrow your options right there. 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.”

Drafting an off-ball linebacker in the first round for the first time in nearly half a century is less likely. If the Eagles did, it would be with their second 1st-round pick, No. 30 overall. Someone like Arkansas’s Drew Sanders might make sense.

And it’s not like the Eagles haven’t allocated significant resources to the two positions. Roseman was GM when they drafted Mychal Kendricks 46th overall in the second round in 2012, and they gave Nigel Bradham a five-year, $40 million contract extension before the 2018 season. Kendricks and Bradham were key guys on the 2017 Super Bowl defense.

And they took Miles Sanders with the 53rd pick overall in 2019, and he had a nice four-year run here before signing with the Panthers in March.

But those are exceptions. And we’ll find out next weekend if there is an even more significant exception in the Eagles’ future.

“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,” Roseman said. “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.”

Does Roseman believe Robinson has those tools? We’ll find out next weekend.