There's a lot of crap floating around because of one losing season.
When Howie took over in 2016, basically that team was built off the 2012-13 draft, out of the two Chip drafts they got three players, Agholor, Ware and Hicks. Pederson misused Agholor (tried to turn him into a slot WR, then goes to Gruden and becomes a legitimate deep threat), Schwartz misused Ware (went elsewhere to start at SS after flopping here at CB).
So when they won the SB in 2017, it wasn't a team built off a series of drafts producing a young core, the top players were in their late 20s and early 30s, Blount (31), Jeffrey (27), Ertz (27), Peters (35), Kelce (30), Brooks (28), Lane (27), Curry (29), Cox (27), Jerrigan (25), Graham (29), Kendricks (27), Bradham (28), McLeod (27), Jenkins (30).
You're not going to blow that team up, but you also know you have a 3 year window or so before they age out and the cap forces you to dump players. So Howie choose to take a win while the window is open strategy. Backload deals to keep the gang together.
Some real bad luck, Howie trades for Darby to upgrade the CB position, started 29 of 32 games his first two seasons, comes here and starts 27 games over 3 seasons, goes to Wash and doesn't miss a game last season. Jerrigan hurts his neck, so Howie signs Malik, who hadn't missed a game in 6 seasons, and was available b/c Denver had moved to a two gap scheme, Malik gets hurt after one game. Signs Wallace as a one year patch, who missed 2 games in 9 seasons, gets hurt after 2 games in Philly. Drafts Dillard to replace Peters, Dillard tears a bicep before his second season.
Some mistakes, while Jeffery played 16 games in 2017, his history suggested he wasn't that durable and his big seasons in 2013 and 2014 were flukes, otherwise he was a meh #2 WR and not worthy of an extension. DeSean is the best big play threat in the NFL when healthy, but he was already breaking down when they signed him.
Metcalf was totally a medical evaluation, two other teams took WRs before he was chosen because teams were wary about his neck, and given the Eagles' awful luck with injuries, can't really blame them from shying away. Hindsight is 20/20, but if they draft Metcalf and he gets injured . . . remember, Sidney Jones was the same kind of 2nd rd gamble. JJAW was not the best use of that pick, however.
Some bad coaching, Chandon Sullivan (UDFA, one year with the Eagles), Jones, Douglas, Poyer, Ware, all started last year for other teams - one is luck, five is some bad DB coaching/scheming.
People like to focus on misses in the draft, but overall since 2016 Howie has a middle of the road record, hurt by the Wentz trade and trading for Darby and Slay and Avery and Tate - win now moves. With a limited number of picks he added Wents and Hurts at QB, Sanders and Scott at RB, Reagor, Watkins, Hightower, Ward, Fulgham at WR, Goedert at TE, Mailata, Dillard, Herbig, Driscoll on the OL, Sweat at DE, Singleton, Edwards, Bradley, Taylor at LB, Wallace, Epps at S. Wentz made the Pro Bowl, I'll bet Mailata will in a few years, Dillard, Sanders, Reagor? The team started getting younger this year as Howie hedged his bets.
The Eagle approach is neither good or bad, people clamor for a strong GM, but the wrong GM can deep six a franchise in three years. People want a "name" coach with control over personnel, but when AR got it we saw the "dream team," when Chip got it, we saw bad drafting and god awful decision making. There is no right structure, only right people.
Howie deferred to his coaches in the draft, and probably in free agency and trades (you really think he traded for Tate and Avery over the objections of his coaches) b/c you either get what your coaches want or get new coaches. The "best player" is contingent on your schemes, imagine Donald in a two gap defense. The Eagles have a consensus model of decision making, but I think Lurie is sincere in that the scouts identified the right players, the coaches lobbied for the wrong players. Howie deferred to the coaches b/c in a win now situation, you get what the coaches think they need to win.
The best thing that happened to the Eagles was going 4-11-1. Now they can rebuild without the SB hanging over them, they got rid of Pederson (Alabama runs a more sophisticated offense, for God's sake!), and Schwartz (whose defenses were based on an offense that can get him a lead, couldn't build a secondary in five seasons). Howie can draft and deal based on upside, not need, and build a team instead of trying to patch a team. The cap overhang will be gone in two years, all it will do is prevent signing FAs to get to 8-8 instead of 6-10 and a worse draft slot. Then in 2023 they can target a few FAs to jump start a young roster.
