Will Josh McDaniels be the next Eagles coach? Several signs seem to be pointing in that direction

Will Josh McDaniels be the next Eagles coach? Several signs seem to be pointing in that direction

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While nothing is official yet, there are several signs pointing to New England Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels becoming the next Philadelphia Eagles coach.

Let’s examine them all:

  • The Eagles interviewed McDaniels in person on Sunday. John Clark reports that the meeting lasted “mid-morning until night after 9 pm. ”A long interview does not necessarily guarantee hiring, to be clear. But it is clear that it was not just a courtesy meeting. McDaniels is a serious candidate. UPDATE: John Clark says he was informed of McDaniels “very well”In his interview.
  • McDaniels has links to Jeffrey Lurie and Howie Roseman. Lurie was born in Boston and has always liked the Patriots. Lurie also referred curiously to McDaniels by his first name during his press conference following Doug Pederson’s resignation. Context:

“We didn’t know we were going to lose Frank Reich, but it suddenly happened when Josh refused that job and started a whole – so you have to be aware.”

Roseman was a college roommate for Jedd Fisch, who worked with McDaniels as a New England quarterback coach in 2020.

10. JOSH MCDANIELS. When I heard that the New England offensive coordinator was doing an interview with the Eagles’ heads on Sunday, I loved it for three reasons. One: Eagles’ interviews are notoriously stupid; I heard that Robert Saleh and Joe Brady each spent more than seven hours in the interview chair. So Philly is interviewing people the franchise is interested in – and not the way you need it. Two: I like organizations that don’t look at what everyone else is doing. Clearly, there are residues of McDaniels giving up their job at Indy two years ago, and it’s understandable. But two years ago, the Colts may have been the best job out there, and Andrew Luck still hadn’t left, and they had an intelligent and progressive general manager at Chris Ballard, and the Colts chose McDaniels over Mike Vrabel. McDaniels has not taken stupid pills since. Good for Jeff Lurie and Howie Roseman judging the 44-year-old McDaniels body of work, rather than just judging a bad 2020. In 12 of his 13 seasons as a New England offensive coordinator, the Patriots had a team in the top 10. And three: the Eagles clearly want to save Carson Wentz. McDaniels knows how to train defenders and train them hard. We’ll see what happens. Who knows who the Eagles will hire, with Staley now out of the market. But credit to the Eagles for interrogating McDaniels.

  • The sports agency representing Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy, whom the Eagles are supposed to want to interview, seems to think McDaniels is getting the job in Philadelphia:
  • There are rumors from local reporters about McDaniels to the Eagles:

  • Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio indicated that the Eagles could be signed later this week. The Eagles cannot hire a coach who is currently in the playoffs. McDaniels is not in the playoffs.

“According to a source with knowledge of the dynamics of the research, there is no specific timetable for hiring – but it may end sooner or later, and possibly this week.”

  • Eagles tend to over-correct. Main example: the team did not have enough speed in 2019, so they left and forced a choice in the first round of Jalen Reagor (instead of choosing the best player available in Justin Jefferson) due to the “adjustment”. From a coaching perspective, the Eagles used “emotional intelligence” as a reason to replace Chip Kelly with Doug Pederson. Perhaps now they see Pederson being very tolerant (especially in the case of Carson Wentz) and want someone who trains harder.

So, Eagles fans, maybe it’s time to get ready for McDaniels to be Pederson’s replacement. It won’t be a popular hiring if it happens:

Elsewhere, in the Eagles’ training buzz …

  • Eagles are supposedly interviewing Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive coordinator Todd Bowles on Monday. But wait. How are they going to meet him if the Bucs are still in the playoffs? Apparently, candidates can circumvent the NFL’s rules and still interview if the property has permission.
  • The Los Angeles Chargers who hired Brandon Staley after being linked to Brian Daboll had some (myself included) thinking that the Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator could be a strong candidate for the Eagles. But it looks like Daboll can stay in Buffalo:

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