Brass tactics: Howie Roseman, Andy Weidl and Nick Sirianni detail the Eagles’ approach to the draft

When Howie Roseman, Andy Weidl, and Nick Sirianni spoke with reporters Wednesday about next week’s NFL draft, they didn’t give us any clues as to what might happen with the 12th overall pick in the first round.

They did tell us some things about what the new Eagles coach wants in a player, how the scouting staff uses that information in setting up the team’s draft board, and why the Eagles traded back with Miami from sixth to 12th overall last month.

“The reason we traded back from 6 to 12 was because flexibility creates opportunity,” Roseman, the general manager, said. “And for us, having an extra first-round pick [next season], when you go back and look at things that are hard to acquire, that is one of the hardest things to acquire.

“But what we really had to do is sit there and go, ‘Who are the 12 players in this draft we would feel really good about? Are there 12 players in this draft that we feel really good about?’ And I think that’s what we’re going to do throughout this draft.

“If you move back, it’s because you feel like you have a bunch of guys that are the same value, and you’d be really happy getting one and getting the extra volume from that pick. If you move up, it’s because your board kind of drops off at that point. And if you select, it’s because you feel like it’s the last player in that sort of range.”

Roseman said that when he found out that it was the 49ers moving up from 12th to third, trading with Miami, he felt confident that the first three picks would be quarterbacks, and that he could have a much better idea of who might be available at 12, as Miami looked to move back up.

Roseman added that conversations continue with teams about moving up or down again as the draft approaches, depending on scenarios that might develop.

At the time of the trade, most observers concluded that using a high draft pick on a quarterback this year was off the table, but when Sirianni, the new coach, was asked Wednesday if Jalen Hurts was his starter, he replied that he wasn’t ready to name any starters.

That might not mean anything. It could mean, in a harder-than-usual-to-parse draft, that the Eagles’ quarterback-drafting door remains open a crack, in case something weird happens. Or it could be lip service to 36-year-old Joe Flacco, who talked about competing with Hurts when he signed here.

Another impression from the Zoom session was that Sirianni might be the most animated Eagles coach since Dick Vermeil. Any object within arm-waving distance is in peril of being knocked aside, as Sirianni’s microphone nearly was at one point. Also, this man really gets fired up talking about the nuances of wide receiver play.

In response to a question about how many highly drafted wide receivers don’t pan out, he detailed what NFL receivers have to do that they usually didn’t have to do in college.

“When these corners are up in your face, they’ve got to get used to releasing off the football and winning off the football,” Sirianni said. “They’ve got to get used to catching the ball in traffic and catching the ball with bodies around them. … And so now they’re catching the ball here, and boom, the ball is getting smacked out of their hands. I shook the camera … I’m sorry, but I’m excited. We’re talking about wideouts.”

Sirianni discussed trying to gauge prospects’ competitiveness through a computer screen, since in-person visits aren’t allowed, and the coach related how he challenged the players to games of “rock, paper, scissors” to see how they’d react — if he talked trash, would they respond in kind?

“Anything that you compete at, when you compete with somebody that’s competitive, they’re going to go at you no matter what, no matter what game you’re playing,” Sirianni said.

The Eagles have not drafted well the past several years, amid intrigue over last-minute decisions that reportedly did not follow the team’s rankings of prospects. Guard Isaac Seumalo and defensive end Derek Barnett are the only selections from the 2016 and 2017 drafts still on the roster. Second-round 2019 wide receiver J.J. Arcega-Whiteside has made no impact in two NFL seasons.

“It hasn’t always been perfect,” Roseman acknowledged, but he stressed that “we’re all on the same page here.”

» READ MORE: Howie Roseman’s tenure as Eagles general manager has included a Super Bowl title, three fired coaches, and his fair share of critics. Through it all, he’s kept Jeffrey Lurie’s unwavering trust.

The move back from six to 12 followed an ESPN report that team owner Jeffrey Lurie had directed his staff to focus on building around Hurts this year, instead of trying to draft a quarterback. Asked about Lurie’s role, Roseman spoke of the owner being presented with evaluations and decisions and then asking questions about them. Roseman indicated that Lurie does not flat-out overrule his staff on draft day, or present his own evaluations of players.

This is a tough draft year, in that more than 150 players opted out of the college season because of pandemic concerns, some college teams ended up not playing many games, scouts’ access was curtailed, and there was no scouting combine. Weidl, the player personnel vice president, had to navigate all that, then retool his evaluations when Sirianni and his staff replaced Doug Pederson’s coaches, after all the college games had been played.

“We’re an extension of the coaching staff, ultimately,” Weidl said of his scouting operation. “We had an excellent week of meetings last week, where you saw the chemistry between the coaching staff and the scouts develop and really evolve, and I think we’re building on that, and I think what’s even more exciting is that we’re going to get all our scouts in here next week in person. … That chemistry is going to continue to build.

“It comes back to knowing what you’re looking at, and knowing what you’re looking for. Coach Sirianni, coach [defensive coordinator Jonathan] Gannon, coach [offensive coordinator Shane] Steichen and their staff, they did a really good job of laying that out for us with clarity.”

Sirianni, asked what he’s looking for, said talent obviously is where you start, but in interviews, “we tried to figure out, does this guy love football? Is this guy competitive? Is this guy tough? Does this guy have a high football IQ?”

Roseman indicated that discussions with the coaches about their needs weren’t so much about whether a coach does or doesn’t like a particular prospect.

“When they tell us how they’re using guys, it allows us to think about the value, about, ‘Is this guy going to play three downs? Is this guy a role player?’ and it helps us, when we’re putting together our board, figure exactly what that value is going to be for our football team, for our schemes.”

The NFL will release its 2021 schedule on May 12. We already know what teams the Eagles are playing, and whether the games are home or away, but not when.

Home: Cowboys, Giants, Washington, Chiefs, Chargers, Saints, 49ers, Buccaneers.

Away: Cowboys, Giants, Washington, Falcons, Panthers, Broncos, Lions, Raiders, Jets.

It’s possible the Atlanta game could be played in London.