With former president Joe Banner out the door in Philadelphia, the power structure of the Eagles has changed.
So who benefits?
There was a report earlier this offseason that Andy Reidpushed for more personnel say and that he was granted more power. It's hard not to view Banner's departure through that prism. As Les Bowen of the Philadelphia Daily News points out, it was believed Banner did make a lot of decisions when it came to the salary cap.
Now there are three key players in the Philly power structure: Reid, general manager Howie Roseman, and owner Jeff Lurie. Roseman will take on Banner's responsibilities with the salary cap. The Eagles insisted that Banner wasn't let go as part of some power struggle.
"No, the opposite," Lurie told the Philadelphia Inquirer. "It was all done, I think, for what's best for everybody involved."
COO Don Smolenski will replace Banner as president and run the day-to-day operations. Banner will remain as an adviser and insists the departure was amicable.
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Of course, Bowen points out the same Eagles organization said that Banner's role wasn't changing. This was a week ago. Banner was the one that said Reid needed to win a Super Bowl to get his contract extended beyond 2013. Is that no longer true? Could Reid end up transitioning to the front office?
We know that Reid remains on the hot seat. He has his name engraved on it. We know Roseman has more power than ever.
And we know that the Eagles will have to win in 2012 or there could be more changes ahead.
