Another Coaching Update

Posted: January 26th, 2021 | Author: | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 1 Comment »

Nick Sirianni continues to build his coaching staff. On Monday he hired his offensive coordinator. We also learned that another member of last year’s staff won’t be returning.

Steichen worked with Sirianni when they were both with the Chargers. Familiarity can be a good thing. Chemistry should not be an issue with this staff.

At the same time, it is also fair to question whether Sirianni is too focused on hiring his guys and not the best guys. The staff isn’t set yet, but he’s got ties to everyone other than Jeff Stoutland so far.

It does seem that DC Jonathan Gannon was a hot coach so he might turn out to be a great hire. Steichen is more of a mixed bag. The Chargers offense did some good things last year and he helped get an amazing season out of rookie QB Justin Herbert.

There were issues. The Chargers ran the ball more than they should have. Head coach Anthony Lynn wanted the running game to be the key to their offense, but Steichen called the plays and some of his calls were bad. There were a couple that were awful.

What does Steichen bring to the table? Usually you want someone to offer some new ideas. Chip Kelly had his college ideas and wanted Pat Shurmur to bring NFL experience. Doug Pederson had an Andy Reid/WCO background. He hired Frank Reich who played/coached in different offenses. Steichen and Sirianni have similar backgrounds.

It feels like Sirianni wants someone he knows and trusts and who can help him to teach the offense. If you hire someone with a different background, they have to learn the offense before teaching it. And there is something to be said for familiarity considering we don’t know what kind of an offseason there will be. As we saw with the Eagles last year, coaches with different backgrounds doesn’t always work.

Sirianni still needs to hire a QBs coach. Mike Kaye wrote a good piece with some different options. Two of the names stood out to me. Pep Hamilton was the QB coach for the Chargers in 2020 and deservedly gets most of the credit for developing Herbert. Hamilton has plenty of experience form a variety of college and pro offenses. He is also black. The Eagles need more diversity on the staff.

The other name that caught my eye was Mike McCoy. He is a former head coach (Chargers) and could help Sirianni deal with the odd issues that will most certainly come up. First time coaches think they know what will happen. They do not. Football always has surprises for coaches and few of them are the good kind.

There are other positions still to be filled. We haven’t heard good rumors on them yet.

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We thought this would happen. Taylor is a complex subject. Doug Pederson thought very highly of him. Carson Wentz loved him.

But QB play and offensive success went downhill the more he got involved with the offense. That could be more to do with circumstances than Taylor’s coaching. Or he might have been in over his head.

It will be interesting to follow his career and see how things play out.

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This is depressing.

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I hope Duce does a good job up there and is able to build up his reputation even more. That will help him to have a better shot at getting the job he really wants.

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He lists at 6-1, 174.

The fact he didn’t want to weigh in is a bit frustrating. We know he’s light. How light was he?

Hopefully he’ll be in the 175 pound range at the Pro Day. His size will affect his draft status. 175 is light for his frame. If he’s even less than that, it will bother some teams.

But he did have one amazing season and is one terrific WR.

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One Comment on “Another Coaching Update”

  1. 1 Eagles News: Can Carson Wentz and Nick Sirianni get on the same page? - World Sports Series said at 6:29 PM on January 27th, 2021:

    […] Another Coaching Update – Iggles BlitzThere were issues. The Chargers ran the ball more than they should have. Head coach Anthony Lynn wanted the running game to be the key to their offense, but Steichen called the plays and some of his calls were bad. There were a couple that were awful. What does Steichen bring to the table? Usually you want someone to offer some new ideas. Chip Kelly had his college ideas and wanted Pat Shurmur to bring NFL experience. Doug Pederson had an Andy Reid/WCO background. He hired Frank Reich who played/coached in different offenses. Steichen and Sirianni have similar backgrounds. It feels like Sirianni wants someone he knows and trusts and who can help him to teach the offense. If you hire someone with a different background, they have to learn the offense before teaching it. And there is something to be said for familiarity considering we don’t know what kind of an offseason there will be. As we saw with the Eagles last year, coaches with different backgrounds doesn’t always work. […]