Making sense of the Eagles coaching search entering Week 3
Philly.com, Inquirer, and Daily News coverage of the Eagles
Making sense of the Eagles coaching search entering Week 3
Zach Berman
By ZACH BERMAN
Two weeks have passed in the Eagles coaching search, and they're still searching. This is not necessarily a bad position, because coaching searches often stretch into mid-January. (If they don't have a coach by the Super Bowl, then there's reason for concern.)
The search has been marked by the pursuit of college head coaches to this point. The Eagles went for 0-for-3 after interviews with Oregon coach Chip Kelly, Penn State coach Bill O'Brien, and Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly. The Eagles were aggressive, but they understood the obstacles in the way. So even though they were snubbed, they did not hold the leverage. If a college coach is going to leave, he either has to want to leave, or need to be made to want to leave.
One team source noted that the Eagles wanted to speak to coaches that they deemed "the top minds in and out of the NFL." But there were issues in the pursuit of each coach. Chip Kelly still has not won a national championship at Oregon; Bill O'Brien had a hefty buyout at Penn State; The Eagles didn't meet with Brian Kelly long enough after the title game to get a true sense of which way he was leaning.
The source indicated that the Eagles are "where we thought we would be." This is in line with the statement the team issued in which they said they knew "there was a remote chance that these coaches would leave their current posts," but they wanted to leave "no stone unturned."
However, it's also important to realize that the Eagles would not have invested two weeks in trying to lure these coaches -- and likely more time before that doing research -- if they didn't think they could get the coach. So there were certainly challenges, but not enough that hindered the Eagles from making those coaches priorities. And definitely not enough that made the Eagles prioritize another coach over the college coaches. The team's stance does have merit, but it does not tell entire story.
The source also suggested that the Eagles have been interested in assistant coaches in the NFL playoffs, which is also why the team is in the position they expected. That makes sense, and it should also mean they could accelerate the search as playoff teams have dwindled, particuarly if Seahawks defensive coordinator Gus Bradley is now the target, or if the Eagles revisit Broncos offensive coordinator Mike McCoy.
The Eagles could also expand their list of college coaches, or elect for a non-NFL assistant such as former Bears coach Lovie Smith, who interviewed Thursday. The Eagles also interviewed former Ravens coach Brian Billick, according to a CSNPhilly.com report. Inquirer columnist Phil Sheridan suggested the Eagles should pursue Jon Gruden.
But Week 3 of the search could take on a different tone. If the Eagles were exploring the past two weeks while hoping the decision of a college coach went in their favor, they may be forced to make a decision now. It's unlikely an assistant coach who interviews with the Eagles would turn them down, unless he fields an offer elsewhere. So the leverage might now be with the Eagles instead of the other way around. And that could result in the Eagles soon naming a coach.
No coach will want to work on equal footing with Roseman. He garners zero respect from anyone. Hopefully Lurie can see the trend, but he is a movie producer and not necessarily and acute businessman— Sports4Life- @Sports4Life....most NFL teams have a GM in place that has a role in personnel decisions. Very few coaches have complete control, so I totally disagree with your statement about Roseman. These college coaches are used to having complete control of their college programs, so I understand that they didn't want to leave. But really I want someone that currently work in the NFL anyway.— eaglestravis
- McCoy seems like the obvious choice. Those people touting Billick and Jon Gruden must like the medicore brand of football we've seen over the past 14 years. The team needs an innovator, someone like McCoy with experience on the offensive side of the ball who can either (1) groom Foles or (2) draft and develop one of the QBs coming in the draft. After a 4-12 season we should have a very high draft pick. On the defense Lovie Smith might be the best available DC if he'll take the job.— 1republican
- CAN someone please call jeff RIE and tell him Gus bradley is ready to be hired. Can some reported please ask why has ever oach in the NFL said this guy is ready and will be a great coach. Someone please ak jeffy what is he waiting for..DEFENSE WINS we ned a tough DEFENSE...
— CSM2003 - Keep it simple, M O N E Y: managment is looking for someone (another sake oil saleman) who will draw in the cash paying crowds.
Even Eagles fans aren't willing to pay for the product that is on the field....at least I hope so, if they are, expect more of the same.....— STEPHEN1988 - This is what you get when your top leadership has zero football experience. The lack of a Football person at that level is shocking… I used to think it was Andy fault that this was the structure, but in reality this is how Laurie wants it… I can only imagine how hard the other teams are snickering over this self inflicted fate. The Pat, Steelers and Giants are the Gold Standard and the Eagles are the Delusional Standard.— CrashTestCorzine
- Gus Bradley's defense basically shut down Atlanta, and almost won the game for Seattle today. He can do the same thing for the Eagles. We need to get this guy. But Chicago might snag him - he'd be perfect for them, and could get them to a Super Bowl quickly - unlike the Eagles, who are 2-3 years away. I hope Jeffy is smart about this.— NM Eagle fan
- Howie roseman: 0-3— hannibal barca
- @Eaglestravis - I agree, I do not want a coach in complete control. Howie though is not a person ANY coach wants to work with because they do not respect him. That is why it will be difficult for them to find someone. Only Lurie can do something about it, because he controls the team.— Sports4Life
- The old (outdated) addage is that defense wins championships. The scores of this weeks games were 45-31, 38-35, 41-28, and 30-28. In the league right now, creative offense is beating good defenses. You simply can't win in the league right now without a high powered offense. The remaining 4 teams rankings in total defense for 2012: Patriots 25th, Falcons 24th, Ravens 17th and San Fran 3rd.— mish798798
- There is no "making sense of the Eagles coaching search" because Jeffey and Howie are leading it.— pitzdidg
- everyone is right about defense winning super bowls, and has obviously been watching the low scoring affairs of the playoffs.
Maybe you, the brilliant posters, can enlighten me as to why the lowest score of any team this weekend was 28? Please use all caps for some words to denote emphasis, as my puny brain probably can't understand what you mean without them.— vinni - Once again, my vote is for Gus. That said, I doubt that the Lurie/Roseman tandem is attractive to ANY coach on the way up. Gus has a pretty good thing going in Seattle right now and Seattle can do nothing but get even better. Pete Carroll is the real deal. Paul Allen is a dipsh*t, but his pockets have always been bottomless and he has enough smarts to hire the right football people. We'll see, but I wouldn't be surprised to see Gus stay in Seattle with Carroll.— ghost of callison
- Call Chris Ault, you fricken idiots! Did you see what Kaepernick did to the Packers yesterday? WTF?— pevans1
- I say we go to Texas and get the best HS coach in the state. That would really mix things up.— truthfirst
