Roseman: Missing Russell Wilson in 2012 Played into Eagles Drafting Jalen Hurts

Philadelphia Eagles general manager Howie Roseman hinted Monday missing out on Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson in the 2012 NFL draft played a role in selecting Jalen Hurts in the second round of this year's draft Friday night. 

Roseman didn't mention Wilson by name during an interview with John Clark of NBC Sports Philadelphia, but his description of the situation matches up with the Seahawks signal-caller and the team's third-round pick that year, Nick Foles:

"In 2012, we had a vision. We had a vision that we would draft a quarterback who's been extremely successful, and I don't want tampering charges on me, but I think we can understand who that was, and then come back in the fourth round and draft a quarterback who won a world championship for us and go back-to-back. And I feel like we got a little cute. And I don't know that there's a big difference between taking the 53rd pick in the draft and taking a pick in the third round if you feel strongly about a guy."

The Eagles had three picks before the Seahawks took Wilson with the 75th overall pick. They chose defensive tackle Fletcher Cox (No. 12), linebacker Mychal Kendricks (No. 46) and defensive end Vinny Curry (No. 59).

Their plan clearly called for bolstering the defense early followed by Wilson at No. 88, and Foles with their fourth-rounder (No. 123) to upgrade their quarterback room. They jumped on Foles a round earlier after the Hawks nabbed the now seven-time Pro Bowl selection.

Taking Hurts with this year's No. 53 choice represents a lesson learned in terms of taking a prospect, even if it's perceived as too early, rather than watching him get drafted by another organization.

Roseman told Clark it doesn't change the team's outlook on starter Carson Wentz, though.

"Listen, Carson's a phenomenal quarterback, he's a phenomenal player, he's a phenomenal person. And nothing changes on that," he said.

Hurts, who started his collegiate career with three years at Alabama, is coming off a tremendous senior season at Oklahoma. He completed 69.7 percent of his throws for 3,851 yards with 32 touchdowns and eight interceptions in 14 games. He added 1,298 rushing yards and 20 scores on the ground.

While the 21-year-old Houston native isn't an immediate threat to Wentz's starting job, he could still see weekly playing time in select packages for the Eagles as a rookie.

Roseman, who's been with the Eagles since 2000 in various roles and was promoted to general manager in 2010, is still bothered by the front office's mistake in 2012. It's also intriguing to wonder how different the NFL would have been over the past eight years if Wilson ended up in Philly.

Hurts may never develop into the high-end, Super Bowl-winning quarterback Wilson did for Seattle, but Philadelphia didn't want to sit around and find out the hard way if he does.