The Eagles have reportedly hired Colts offensive coordinator Nick Sirianni to be their new head coach after moving on from Doug Pederson. Though the team has not announced the move officially, Sirianni and the Eagles have already begun the process of filling out the rest of the coaching staff.
We already know that former defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz is stepping away from coaching and taking some time off. So, he won’t be returning to the Eagles in 2021. On Saturday, there was a report that the Eagles were zeroing in on Colts secondary coach Jonathan Gannon for their vacant defensive coordinator job.
Gannon is reportedly in demand around the league and has received interest from multiple teams with defensive coordinator openings. Jim Ayello at the Indianapolis Star had this to say about Gannon on Saturday:
Gannon spent three years in Indianapolis coaching under Eberflus and over the past couple of weeks became a sought-after defensive coordinator candidate, reportedly drawing interest from Atlanta and the Los Angeles Rams.
During his time in Indianapolis, Gannon drew rave reviews from Colts players, fellow coaches and the front office.
His most recent claim to fame was reuniting with Xavier Rhodes — he worked with Rhodes in Minnesota as an assistant defensive backs and quality control coach in 2013-17 — and helping return to Pro Bowl form.
There is also a report out there that the Eagles were expected to interview Washington defensive backs coach Chris Harris for defensive coordinator, as well, but it looks at least for now like Gannon is the pick.
Update: Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero are reporting that Jonathan Gannon is officially being hired as the team’s new defensive coordinator.
Eagles interviewing OC candidates Sunday
It looks like defensive coordinator was the focus on Saturday, and offensive coordinator candidates are being interviewed on Sunday. According to Broncos reporter Mike Klis, Denver running backs coach Curtis Modkins is interviewing with the Eagles for their offensive coordinator opening on Sunday.
Ian Rapoport added shortly after Klis’s tweet that current Chargers offensive coordinator Shane Steichen is also speaking with the Eagles about their OC opening today.
I would think Steichen is the favorite for the job at this point, assuming he wants it and will not be retained by the Chargers, who recently fired Anthony Lynn and hired Brandon Staley as their head coach. Sirianni and Steichen worked together with the Chargers, with Sirianni actually being moved from quarterbacks coach to wide receivers coach so that Steichen could be promoted. Here is what Dave Zangaro of NBC Sports Philadelphia had to say in a recent mailbag:
Sirianni was the Chargers’ quarterbacks coach from 2014-15 and then coached receivers from 2016-17. But I wouldn’t necessarily call it a demotion. Because there were some big changes with the Chargers in 2016 — one of the biggest was that Frank Reich was fired and then ended up in Philly. But the Chargers also wanted to promote Shane Steichen from quality control coach and didn’t want to lose Sirianni. And Sirianni had coached receivers in Kansas City and also helped with receivers when he arrived in San Diego.
Zangaro also dug up a quote about the move from then-Chargers head coach Mike McCoy about the decision to move the coaches around:
“When you put a staff together, you always look at the option to move guys around if that is where they are the best fit. Nick has coached receivers in the past with other teams, and also his first year here working with Fred (Graves). Knowing what the players think of him and how he did there, he will do a great job. I think very highly of both Nick and Shane. They’ve done a phenomenal job the past couple years, and they have a great passion for the game. They love it, and you love what you see out of them whether it was Shane standing up to talk at a team meeting the day before a game last year. And Nick, he is so passionate out there, even at practice. Sometimes you have to tell him, ‘Settle down a little bit. It’s not game day yet.’ But you love that. They are great, young coaches.”
Steichen, Anthony Lynn, and quarterbacks coach Pep Hamilton developed rookie quarterback Justin Herbert into one of the most exciting young passers in 2020. All three have been mentioned as potential OC candidates for the Eagles, but Lynn just agreed to take the OC job with the Detroit Lions. Hamilton is reportedly interviewing with both the Steelers and Titans for their OC openings.
Update: The Eagles have agreed to terms with Colts assistant Kevin Patullo to be their offensive passing game coordinator. Patullo was a “pass game specialist” with Indianapolis last season.
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Mike Maher is the editor and publisher of The Birds Blitz. Follow him on Twitter @mikeMaher and @TheBirdsBlitz and check out his archive for all of his latest stories about the Eagles and the NFL.
