Eagles Howie Roseman Explains His Double-Dip Scoop At Cornerback

It was all about flexibility and depth when it came to the cornerback double-dip scooped by Eagles general manager Howie Roseman in a span of 72 hours last week.

“The first half of the season showed us how important corner depth is,” said Roseman during a zoom call not long after Tuesday’s trade deadline expired at 4 p.m. “We had a bunch of games here where we didn’t have our full complement of guys, and it’s a position that you need to have a bunch of guys here for the amount of games that we’re trying to play.”

Familiarity helped, too, in trading for Michael Carter on Wednesday and Jaire Alexander on Saturday.

Joe Douglas was the general manager of the New York Jets when he picked Carter in the fifth round of the 2021 draft. Safeties coach Joe Kasper knew Carter, too, when Kasper worked with defensive backs at Duke while Carter played there.

As for Alexander, defensive backs coach and passing game coordinator Christian Parker got to know him when Parker was the quality control coach with the Packers for two years, when Alexader was still early in his career. The Eagles’ strong relationship with the Baltimore Ravens also came in handy when it came time to make the move on Alexander.

Familiarty And Matchup Flexibility Helped Trades Happen

Sep 29, 2025; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; Miami Dolphins wide receiver Jaylen Waddle (17) makes a catch against New York Jets cornerback Michael Carter II (30) during the first half at Hard Rock Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rich Storry-Imagn Images | Rich Storry-Imagn Images

“When he signed in June with Baltimore, I’m thinking what a great signing by them,” said Roseman. “Obviously, it didn’t work out the way he wanted or that they wanted, or he wouldn’t have been available to us. The relationship we have with Baltimore and being able to have honest conversations and understanding what he went through a little bit in training camp and getting back to health.”

Roseman and his staff also did a deeper dive on Alexander and liked what they saw enough to part with a sixth-round pick in 2026 and a seventh-rounder in 2027, in exchange for the two-time Pro Bowl corner and a 2027 seventh-round pick.

The GM liked what he saw from Alexander, 28, when the Eagles and Packers met in Brazil to start the 2024 season and valued what Parker had to say about him.

“Sometimes in this league you acquire information, you watch everything, and you feel like, hey, the risk is worth the reward here,” said Roseman. “I think when you talk about a still young guys, knowing where his health is at now, feeling healthy, feeling good, we felt the risk was worth the reward for him.”

The flexibility with Carter could pay dividends. Roseman compared him to Avonte Maddox who could play inside the slot or at safety. Carter can do the same thing, and maybe better given that, at 26, he is two years younger.

With Carter’s ability to move inside, the Eagles could use Cooper DeJean more on the outside in nickel packages.

“What we’re really trying to do is we’re trying to be able to match up with all kinds of shapes and sizes at the wide receiver position in the secondary,” said Roseman. “When you have guys that can do that it just gives you so much flexibility when you’re going to play different teams and the different types of receivers that they have, the different types of tight ends, even backs coming out of the backfield.

“When you talk about Michael Carter, the guy has played at an elite level inside, so that gives you flexibility there. Incredibly sharp guy. He can play safety, which is really important. I think we’ve always had that piece of a guy who can play nickel and can also come into a game and play safety. Last year we had that with Avonte. So it gives that flexibility.

“Obviously, Coop is an incredible player and somebody who can play really anywhere in the secondary, so it gives you those matchups.”

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