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Howie Roseman: 'That Year Off Was Best Thing For Me'

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — It's taken some time, perhaps too much time in the minds of some, but it appears finally that Howie Roseman has learned the art of compromise and is willing to accept the input of others. Most notably Joe Douglas, the Eagles' vice president of player personnel.

Related: Eagles First-Round Mock Draft

Maybe the best thing that happened to Roseman was the power struggle he lost to Chip Kelly, exiling him for a year. It gave Roseman a different perspective on what it's like to be pushed out—and by someone like Kelly, whose own ineptitude made any move Roseman made shine.

The step back and the experience Roseman has gained has given him a wider perspective.

"I was a young guy who had a lot of responsibility, and sometimes when you do that, you want to take more on your plate, and you want to feel like, 'I gotta make these decisions because this is the role,' but it's all about collaborating and getting people's point of view and then trying to make the best decision for the team," Roseman said last week. "It's not, 'I want to draft this guy so this is what we're doing, and I don't care what these seven people have to say.'"

This draft coming up could be the most important in Roseman's long tenure with the Eagles, who haven't won a playoff game since he became the general manager in 2010.

Related: Draft Rumors: Eagles 'Very Interested' In Joe Mixon

Now with Douglas in the picture, it seems from the outside, that Roseman is willing to listen to what others have to say about the Eagles' draft board.

"I think you get that perspective when you take a step back and you sit there and say, 'What could I have done better?'" Roseman admitted. "I understand that this game is not always fair on and off the field, but if you try to do the right things and treat people the right way good things will happen. And that year off was the best thing that ever happened to me personally and professionally. That gave me a unique perspective, and I think really helped in terms of what I want to do for the next 10 years and being around really good people.

"Part of bringing him in here is trying to change what we've done and trying to get better. We have tremendous trust in Joe and his ability to put that together. I think it's been a really fun process. It's kind of rejuvenated a lot of guys, including myself, who've been here for a while to learn something new and be part of that and go and ask him questions.

"You know, 'Hey, this is how I see this player, where would you put him?' To have someone here who makes sure that we're doing the right thing and we're sticking to our board and we're taking everything else out of the equation. We've got a really good process in place."

Let's see where it goes.

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