Philadelphia Eagles general manager Howie Roseman has big plans for Uar Bernard, but the team could actually lose him after an NFL rule change.Bernard, from Nigeria, joined Philly as a seventh-round draft pick in April, having participated in the International Player Pathway (IPP) Pro Day in front of scouts.Bernard was drafted by the Eagles after impressing at an IPP Pro DayGetty“We wanted to take the chance on the kid,” Roseman said at the time, as comparisons were drawn between the rookie and Eagles IPP success story Jordan Mailata.“We understand it’s going to take time. It’s going to take a lot of time here. But it’s pretty cool. We spend a lot of time talking about unusual and certainly unusual with that guy.”Pre-draft, Bernard had never played organized American football — but was recoginzed as an athletic freak show.He stands as a 6-foot-5, 306-pound defensive tackle, with an impressive combination of size, strength and athletic ability.NFL Weekly Newsletter - SIGN UP!talkSPORT is your home for NFL in the UK as we launch our biggest year of coverage yet!2026 promises to be an epic year for NFL on talkSPORT – and we want you to join us for the ride.MORE INFO & SIGN-UP HERE!This season will be our biggest ever with live commentary of 90+ games, including behind-the-scenes access to international games and all three London fixtures, plus bumper coverage of Super Bowl 61 at SoFi Stadium.Exclusive interviews, hard-hitting opinion, latest front-office drama and top breaking news – all delivered straight to your inbox each week.Bernard worked with the Eagles throughout the offseason, alongside fellow IPP prospect Joshua Weru, a Kenyan rugby player.While neither player made Philadelphia’s 53-man roster, Roseman’s gamble paid off, and both cleared waivers to reunite on the practice squad.The Eagles, who are linked with a potential relocation, will be allowed to keep 17 players on their practice unit, instead of the normal 16, as they have designated Bernard as an IPP player.But even though the team has plans to keep their Nigerian prospect, an NFL rule change means any other team can swoop in and take him.Eagles risk losing 6-foot-5, 306-pound DT to rivalsAccording to Jeff Neiburg of The Philadelphia Inquirer, teams were previously able to protect IPP players from being signed away by other rivals.But the rules recently changed.The Eagles are at risk of losing Bernard, even though he’s been designated as an IPP playerGettyFellow IPP prospect Weru, from Kenya, has also signed with Philly’s practice squadGetty“IPP players are like any other practice squad player. They can be signed to another team’s active roster at any time,” Neiburg wrote.He followed up his article by adding further context on X.“Apparently the league website has outdated information, and designated IPP players are now available to be poached off a practice squad the same way any other practice squad player is,” Neiburg explained.While both Bernard and Weru are green, the Eagles have been working to get the pair into gameday shape.“From our perspective, development is real,” Roseman said.“These guys have tremendous ability to be developed. They want to be developed. They have tools in their body. They have great character.Bernard (L) and Weru (R) have been developing with the Eagles during offseason and the preseasonGettyThe Eagles GM added he was glad to see both players make it through waivers.“We put a lot of time and effort during this week,” he explained.“Not only looking into what’s going to be out there, but by taking snapshots of what other teams are seeing in our guys and saying, ‘They don’t have the practices, they don’t have the individual periods, they don’t have these guys in the meeting rooms.’“Still very excited about them, really glad that they did get through, certainly wasn’t certain about that.”Roseman and the Eagles are working closely with both IPP athletes, but could lose themGettyFor now, Bernard and Weru will be with Philly’s practice squad. But there’s nothing to protect them from being poached, should a rival team wish to cash-in on the work that’s already been done.