Front office shuffle

The Eagles announced via a statement on Friday that Tom Heckert had been given a contract extension through 2011 and that Howie Roseman had been promoted to vice president of player personnel. They then declined interview requests with Heckert, Roseman or coach Andy Reid, who has final say over personnel decisions.

Roseman replaces Jason Licht, whose firing still has not been announced by the team.

Here is Les' take on what this all means from Saturday's Daily News ... We won't even make you click a link, by just pasting in the text:

The Eagles still haven't announced the departure of player personnel vice president Jason Licht, but they gave his title away yesterday to Howie Roseman, the team's former vice president of football administration.

As the Daily News reported last week, a bitter falling-out with Roseman is believed to have led to Licht's dismissal.

Yesterday's move is interesting for several reasons.

Roseman, originally team president Joe Banner's protégé, is taking a scouting job, without a lot of scouting in his background. Licht was perceived to be close to general manager Tom Heckert, who hired him from the Patriots in 2003. Meanwhile, Eagles pro personnel director Scott Cohen, who also works for Heckert, is leaving the Eagles for an assistant GM job with the New York Jets.

Those moves would seem to further speculation that arose when the Eagles more or less openly encouraged Heckert to apply for the GM's job in Atlanta last January, a post he did not get. The media perception that Heckert might no longer be an ascending star in the organization might have led to yesterday's other announcement, that the team has extended Heckert's contract to 2011.

The Eagles declined to make Roseman, Heckert or head coach Andy Reid, who has final say in personnel matters, available to reporters, rather issuing a statement from Reid.

"I feel we have strengthened our personnel staff today by extending Tom's contract and by promoting Howie Roseman," Reid said. "Tom's leadership and work ethic has continued to impress me over the years. Tom has also done a great job of nurturing and incorporating Howie's talent into the personnel side of the organization. Howie has demonstrated a sharp eye for talent evaluation along with a knack for creative draft and free agent strategies. Both Tom and I feel Howie will be an excellent addition to the Philadelphia Eagles personnel staff."

Roseman, 33, joined the team in 2000 as salary cap/staff counsel. He became director of football administration in 2003 and vice president of football administration in 2006.

Licht, 37, first worked with Heckert in 1995-96 in Miami. When the Trenton Times broke the story that he was leaving, speculation held that the team was holding off announcing his departure until he had another job. So far, that hasn't happened.

Cohen, 39, is a Philadelphia native who grew up in Cherry Hill. He handled much of the team's advance scouting.

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Meanwhile, the Napa Valley Register in California has a nice piece on Eagles draftee Mike Gibson, a 6-4, 305-pound offensive lineman taken in the sixth round. Here is the story.