Former Eagles exec Ryan Grigson earns wings as Colts GM

It's difficult to imagine Cody Parkey as an Eagle if it weren't for the relationship between Howie Roseman and Ryan Grigson.

Former Eagles colleagues and frequent trade partners, the two general managers on Aug. 20 had just placed rookies on waivers who would have filled holes on each other's teams. The Eagles needed a kicker, and the Colts had just cut Parkey. The Colts needed a running back, and the Eagles had just released David Fluellen.

Realizing the mutual interest, Roseman and Grigson worked out a straight-up deal before Parkey and Fluellen officially went on waivers. It was an exchange that saved them from having to sweat out the 20-or-so teams ahead of them on the waiver wire that could have claimed either player.

"We did the deal in a nanosecond," Grigson said during an interview with The Inquirer last week, a few days before his Colts were to host the Eagles on Monday night. "It just made sense. Howie, obviously, got the sweet end of that deal. Sometimes that's how it works out."

The Colts, who eventually released Fluellen, weren't going to cut kicker Adam Vinatieri, who could be a Hall of Famer someday. Parkey, who had a strong debut after beating out Alex Henery, is still a ways from being mentioned in the same breath. But if he pans out long-term, Roseman can file the trade in the win column.

Roseman and Grigson haven't pulled off any blockbuster swaps, but they have collaborated on five trades in the past two-plus years since the latter left the Eagles to take the Colts' top personnel position. In a league in which misdirection is often the norm, trust is a factor in their partnership.

"You know that, good or bad, he's going to shoot us straight on what the player is about," Roseman said. "We believe in the action. We believe in turning over at some points and seeing about fits and systems. If there's a spot that he has a need, we'll try to figure out a win-win situation."

Since 2010, Roseman has engineered more trades than any other GM. Grigson likes to tinker, too. Aside from the Fluellen deal, the Eagles have sent tackle Winston Justice, cornerback D.J. Johnson, linebackers Greg Lloyd and Moise Fokou, and fullback Stanley Havili to the Colts.

Only Havili, who was swapped for defensive end Clifton Geathers, remains in Indianapolis. Parkey is the only former Colt to still be on the Eagles roster, although the Fokou-Lloyd trade also brought a seventh-round draft pick in 2013.

The Colts have more of an Eagles feel, with former players such as center A.Q. Shipley and safety Colt Anderson on the roster. Both were under-the-radar signings for the Eagles, and it is likely that Grigson had something to do with their stays in Philadelphia.

"Howie used to always say, 'Grigs, you'd be a great expansion GM.' I like grinding those guys that are under the radar and finding players," Grigson said. "That's kind of what I was that first year with the Colts."

In Grigson's first year in Indianapolis, the Colts fired coach Jim Caldwell, released quarterback Peyton Manning, hired coach Chuck Pagano, drafted quarterback Andrew Luck first overall, lost Pagano for three months of the season as he received treatment for leukemia, and earned a wild-card playoff berth.

"There was no blueprint for what we endured that year," Grigson said. "It was just one thing after the other."

Grigson was named NFL executive of the year, and last year the Colts won the AFC South and a playoff game. They're a near-unanimous pick to win the division again this season.

Cynics might point out that drafting Luck was a no-brainer, but there were some evaluators who thought the Redskins' Robert Griffin III would be a better NFL quarterback. Grigson also turned over much of the roster.

Roseman staunchly defended Grigson's record. They're part of a 32-member fraternity, but the GMs remain close friends. They said they never let competition for promotion get in the way, although they were often up for the same jobs, including the Eagles' GM vacancy after Tom Heckert left for the Browns in January 2010.

"I remember saying to Howie, 'Hey, good luck, knock it out of the park,' " Grigson said. "He's the type of person where if he gets beat, he's going to take it like a man. . . . I felt like I was going to come in swinging, and he knows that. He knows how I am. I did my best."

Louis Riddick, then the team's director of pro personnel, was also interviewed by the Eagles, but it came down to Roseman and Grigson.

"They were both excellent," former Eagles president Joe Banner said, "but based on his abilities and the breadth of areas he had worked in, "Howie was our choice."

Roseman originally worked on the business side of the front office but moved over to personnel in 2006. The Eagles, under coach Andy Reid, had assembled a personnel staff in the early-to-mid-2000s that would develop four GMs - Heckert, Roseman, Grigson, and Jason Licht, who is now with the Buccaneers.

Grigson was hired by Heckert in 2004 after he spent four years with the St. Louis Rams as a regional scout. He thought he was bound to work for Ozzie Newsome, but days before he was to interview with the Ravens GM, he met with the Eagles and never left.

"I met Coach Reid, and it just felt right," Grigson said. "Coach Reid was an O-lineman. I think there were a lot of things that I just felt comfortable with and how he came up."

Grigson was an offensive lineman, too. He played college football at Purdue and was drafted by the Bengals in the sixth round. He bounced around and landed in the CFL, but back surgery ended his career. It just meant he would get to pursue his dream job a little sooner.

By the time Grigson joined the Eagles, he had scouted for the CFL, AFL, and NFL. He had a knack, Roseman said, for finding hidden talent. Roseman recalled Grigson's discovery of linebacker Andy Studebaker out of Division III Wheaton College.

The Eagles drafted Studebaker in the sixth round of the 2008 draft, but he wound up in Kansas City and had a productive five seasons. He is now a reserve with, yes, the Colts.

Roseman said Grigson's fingerprints are still on the Eagles' roster.

Grigson rose from director of college scouting to vice president of player personnel when Roseman became GM. He said he had the opportunity to follow Heckert to Cleveland, but he stayed as Roseman's lieutenant for two seasons and rounded out his résumé.

"I can remember he would meet us on the road sometimes at away games," Roseman said, "and just ask me about the process: 'What do you do an hour-and-a-half before games? How do you communicate with the coach?' "

The Rams and Colts called in January 2012. Grigson said it was difficult to leave the Eagles. His sons were huge fans. He said his youngest used to fall back into bed like DeSean Jackson into the end zone. A week after he took the Colts job, Grigson said, Roseman sent him an Eagles uniform with his name and the No. 8 - for his years of service - on it.

They'll go back to rooting for each other after Monday night.

"We both love what we do," Grigson said. "As crazy and as hard as the hours get, and as stressful as it gets, there's still a part of you that when you wake up, you're still excited to come to work. There are only 32 of these jobs in the NFL, and we're one of them."

@Jeff_McLane