Ranking Howie Roseman's 5 Best Draft Classes: The Blueprint Behind Philly's Dynasty

Howie Roseman has been the Philadelphia Eagles' general manager for the better part of 15 years. In that time, he's built two Super Bowl rosters, survived a near-firing under Chip Kelly, and turned the Eagles into one of the NFL's most consistent contenders.

But if you want to understand why this franchise stays in the championship conversation year after year, you don't look at the free agency splashes. You look at the draft classes. That's where Roseman separates himself from every other GM in football.

Here are his five best, ranked — and the case for why the most recent one might be the greatest draft class any Eagles GM has ever assembled.

5. 2022: The Super Bowl Foundation

Key picks: Jordan Davis (1st/No. 13), Cam Jurgens (2nd/No. 51), Nakobe Dean (3rd/No. 83)

This class only had five picks, and Roseman traded the No. 18 overall pick and a third-rounder to Tennessee for A.J. Brown before the draft even started. That trade alone would make this class legendary. But the actual picks hit too.

Jordan Davis became an immovable force on the interior. Cam Jurgens stepped into Jason Kelce's shoes at center — a transition that terrified every Eagles fan alive — and made it look seamless. Nakobe Dean fell to the third round because of injury concerns and turned into a starting linebacker.

Three picks. Three starters. Plus A.J. Brown. That's an absurd return for a class that fueled a Super Bowl run in Year 1.

4. 2020: The Franchise Quarterback Gamble

Key pick: Jalen Hurts (2nd/No. 53)

This entire class lives and dies with one pick, and that pick changed the trajectory of the franchise. When Roseman took Hurts in the second round — with Carson Wentz still the starter — the city nearly rioted. Talk radio melted down. "We just drafted a backup quarterback in Round 2?!"

Turns out, Roseman saw something everyone else missed. Hurts took over as the starter, led the Eagles to two Super Bowls, won one, and became the engine of Philly's offensive identity. The rest of the 2020 class didn't produce much, but when your second-round pick becomes a franchise quarterback, nothing else matters.

3. 2010: The Long Game

Key pick: Brandon Graham (1st/No. 13)

Brandon Graham was called a bust for years. YEARS. The fan base wanted Earl Thomas at No. 13, and when Graham couldn't crack the starting lineup early, it looked like Roseman had blown his first ever first-round pick.

Then Graham quietly became one of the most productive pass rushers in Eagles history. He made a Pro Bowl. He strip-sacked Tom Brady in Super Bowl LII to seal the championship. He played 15 seasons in midnight green. The man who was "the bust" became the legend.

Sometimes the best draft picks are the ones you have to wait for. Roseman waited. Philly was rewarded.

2. 2018: The Perfect Class

Key picks: Dallas Goedert (2nd/No. 49), Avonte Maddox (4th/No. 125), Josh Sweat (4th/No. 130), Jordan Mailata (7th/No. 233)

This is the class that proves Roseman's real superpower isn't trading up for stars — it's finding value in the mid-to-late rounds.

The Eagles didn't have a first-round pick or a third-round pick in 2018. Didn't matter. Goedert became a top-10 tight end in the league. Josh Sweat developed into a Pro Bowl edge rusher. Avonte Maddox was a quality starter at slot corner for years. And Jordan Mailata — a seventh-round pick who had never played a down of football in his life, coming from Australian rugby — turned into one of the best left tackles in the NFL.

Five picks. Four long-term starters. All four got second contracts from the Eagles. That's a 1.000 batting average on meaningful contributors. No GM in football has a class that clean.

1. 2024: The Masterpiece

Key picks: Quinyon Mitchell (1st/No. 22), Cooper DeJean (2nd/No. 40), Jalyx Hunt (3rd/No. 94), Will Shipley (4th)

This is it. The one. The draft class that Roseman will be remembered for when they put his name in the Eagles Hall of Fame.

Quinyon Mitchell stepped in as a rookie and played like a shutdown corner from Week 1. Cooper DeJean — who Roseman traded up to grab at No. 40 after the Eagles had reportedly considered him at No. 22 — became the most versatile defensive back on the roster. Both were difference-makers in the Super Bowl.

Jalyx Hunt flashed as a rotational edge rusher with real upside. Will Shipley gave the backfield depth behind Saquon Barkley. The class contributed immediately, and the ceiling is still rising.

Mitchell and DeJean alone make this a historic class. Two rookie defensive backs playing at that level, in a Super Bowl, in the same secondary? That doesn't happen. Roseman made it happen by identifying exactly what the defense needed and attacking it with precision.

The Roseman Formula

Look at the pattern across these five classes: Roseman doesn't just draft talent. He drafts fit. Every pick addresses a specific need with a specific type of player. He's not swinging for home runs on athletes — he's building a roster with surgical precision.

The misses exist. The 2019 class was rough. The 2011 class gave us Jason Kelce in the sixth round and Danny Watkins in the first — the range is real. But when Roseman hits, he doesn't just find starters. He finds cornerstones.

That's the blueprint. That's why Philadelphia stays dangerous every single year. And if the 2024 class develops the way it's trending, Howie Roseman might go down as the greatest drafting GM of his generation.