Agent Games

Posted: January 8th, 2016 | Author: | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 129 Comments »

We can call this the coaching search time of the year. We could also call it coaching free agency.

Players in free agency usually have a large number of suitors. Coaches face a different market. Right now there are 7 job openings. And you have to understand that not every coaching candidate is going to appeal to all those organizations. The candidate might be more realistically looking at 2 or 3 suitors. That gives teams the upper hand.

This is where agents come in.

A Friday night update on Adam Gase.

So the Dolphins are hot to hire Gase.

But wait.

Just 2 days ago it was the Eagles who were hot to hire Gase.

I don’t know anything for a fact, but it sure feels like Adam Gase’s agent is using the media to create a sense of desperation in regard to his client.

The Eagles were the team that loved his client so suddenly he wanted the Dolphins (and others) to fear losing him. Now it is the Dolphins who might sign Gase so the Eagles (and others) need to fear losing him. This happens until someone makes a good enough offer.

Gase’s agent is Jimmy Sexton. He will play games with the media when it helps his client. This feels like one of those times. I could be wrong, but it just feels that way.

Adam Gase is the top coaching candidate right now, but he’s not a guy you blindly hand your franchise to. He’s not so far above the competition that he can do what he wants. Back in 1999 the top guys were Mike Holmgren, Brian Billick and  Jim Haslett. Andy Reid was down the list. Holmgren was the clear top guy. He controlled the market. There is nothing like that this time around.

The Eagles reportedly like Gase. I hope he gets the job. That said, I think the Eagles are smart to look around. They met with Ben McAdoo on Thursday. They’ll meet with Doug Pederson on Sunday. Paul Guenther should get an interview soon. We’ve heard rumors about Teryl Austin, but haven’t seen anything yet.

Gase isn’t the only guy out there in the middle of agent games. Sexton represents Doug Marrone. He was linked to the Eagles by some big name national reporters and then that was debunked by local reporters. The same thing was true in regard to Gase getting a second interview with the Eagles. National guy broke the news, local guy refuted it. I think Reuben Frank was the local reporter who refuted both stories. Agents are more likely to use national media guys to get stories out. That gets them to a bigger audience.

Maybe Gase gets hired by Miami this weekend.

Maybe he’s back in Philly for another meeting.

Maybe no team makes him an offer.

As I wrote the other day, the key is for the Eagles to find the right guy. If they felt Gase was a no-brainer, slam dunk, they would have made him a strong offer already. Clearly the Eagles want to look around. They want to get this hire right.

I’m not in a rush for the Eagles to make a hire. There is no “must have” candidate for me. The more I’ve read and studied Guenther and even Pederson, the more they have grown on me. I still prefer Gase, but that could easily change if I was able to sit in the room for the interviews. That’s the mystery part of the process. Reid obviously knocked the socks off Jeff Lurie and Joe Banner back in 1999.

Even the interview can give you a false-positive. The Buffalo Bills though Gregg Williams was sensational when he interviewed with them back in 2001. He was 17-31 in 3 years there.

The agents will continue to play their games in the media. Don’t get too caught up in reports. Back in 2013 Andy Reid was lock to be hired by the Cardinals. He ended up in KC. Last year everyone thought Doug Marrone was a lock for the Jets job. Todd Bowles ended up getting that.

Let’s see what happens.

_


129 Comments on “Agent Games”

  1. 1 Sam Bradfords Chicken Legs said at 9:33 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    Force other teams hand on Gase so Hue Jackson can be ours. Genius!

  2. 2 Charlie Kelly said at 9:40 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    Thats the guy i want, Hue Jackson. Doesnt seem to be any momentum for that as of yet tho..

  3. 3 Jamie Parker said at 9:51 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    Same here, but it appears the Eagles have no interest.

  4. 4 Sam Bradfords Chicken Legs said at 10:19 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    He’s in the playoffs so sadly I don’t think he’s gonna be the guy.

  5. 5 RC5000 said at 10:34 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    He is interviewing Sunday with SF. Reports fwiw he’s frontrunner for their job.

  6. 6 Honest_T said at 9:56 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    Hue was power hungry in Oakland, Howie don’t play that!

  7. 7 TypicalDouche said at 10:00 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    That is true but that doesn’t mean he hasn’t learned his lesson and can’t be a good coach. He also became power hungry after Al Davis passed because his son had no clue what he was doing so Hue wanted the power so he can make the football decisions.

  8. 8 Honest_T said at 10:32 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    I’m not saying he didn’t learn from it, but the way he danced on Al David’s grave he doesn’t sound like Howie’s guy.

  9. 9 peteike said at 11:15 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    Ya that was pretty bad but that post got me thinking. Have you seen Al Davis son

  10. 10 Eagles_Fan_in_San_Fran said at 2:10 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Mr. “5-Dollar Haircut”:

  11. 11 laeagle said at 10:05 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    It’s interesting because I remember reading and hearing the same thing, and brought it up recently. But then, a few days ago, Amy Trask, formerly from the Oakland front office, really went to bat for Hue. Said she’d want him to coach her kids. And that he went through all kinds of stuff that no one will ever know about.

    I find it interesting that Hue supposedly had power/ego problems with the front office, but someone from that same front office went out of her way to vouch for him on Twitter.

    Not sure what it means, but it sure sounds interesting.

  12. 12 Charlie Kelly said at 12:36 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    i think he was power hungry because the GM was fired and the owner had died.

  13. 13 Eagles_Fan_in_San_Fran said at 2:15 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Exactly – someone needed to take charge.
    It was – to put it mildly – a very unique situation that he was dealing with. Gotta give him a pass there.

  14. 14 Charlie Kelly said at 9:42 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    pederson would be such a “meh” hire. i really dont see what he has done to even deserve it. The chiefs offense isnt great and he doesnt call plays.

  15. 15 Jamie Parker said at 9:54 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    Well he won’t have to call plays as HC either. He can delegate that to the OC. Who knows, he might be Andy Reid with more personality. He was an NFL QB, so he should have some kind of personality, right? Also, he beat Dallas. 🙂

  16. 16 Greg Tulino said at 10:50 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    Andy Reid was a Meh hire. Most coaches were at one point a “meh” hire. You really think the Eagles brass if they decided to hire DP wouldn’t have sufficient reasons/thinking to do so? Fans thinking “meh” hire makes no sense to me.

  17. 17 Charlie Kelly said at 12:01 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    really makes no sense? at least before andy came here he was apart of the GB team, had a hand in developing brett favre. what has doug done?? what instills confidence in you about DP?

  18. 18 Greg Tulino said at 12:10 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Well, it’s possible Lurie really values AR opinion who could be telling him that DP is going to be a great head coach. The real reason we can’t think this is a “meh” hire is we do not know DP’s coaching philosophy or what defense he wants to see his team run or how detailed oriented and prepared he is. If we could watch his interview then ya, maybe we can come to the conclusion that it would be real low key boring hiring, but at this stage we can’t discount anything or anyone as a candidate unless we know all these details. Thus we can’t and don’t know if its a bad/meh/boring hire at this stage. IN addition I do not believe the media hype of a “lead candidate” at this stage before you even interview. I do believe the Eagles want to interview DP and others as they come up with a short list to potentially come back for second interviews to hopefully get it right. In the end all that maters is we get it right. Time will tell.

  19. 19 Charlie Kelly said at 12:35 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    ehhh, we can def say its a meh hire. its his past we will all look at when deciding if its a meh hire, not his philosophy or what defense he wants and yadda yadda yadda. it will be what he has done in his coaching past, if he was successful or not.

  20. 20 Greg Tulino said at 12:48 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    That’s cool. Call it a “Meh hire ” if you like. We are all entitled to our opinions. Personally I am not willing to say that w/out knowing more about the candidate. Under your criteria they are all “meh” potential hires out of these offensive and defensive coordinators. Nobody is that exciting. We just have to hope that the Eagles brass choose the right head coach and we won’t know if they were right for a few years.

  21. 21 Jamie Parker said at 12:54 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    So you’re saying we’ll be getting DP’d…

  22. 22 Greg Richards said at 9:52 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    Matt Lombardo said on twitter that he’s hearing there’s a dark horse for job that no one has mentioned yet but he wants to get better sourcing before he just throws it out there. That’s consistent with Caplan’s report that there were other candidates besides those mentioned that the Eagles want to interview.

    Som

  23. 23 Honest_T said at 10:00 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    Why do I sense Childress or Mornenwhig?

  24. 24 peteike said at 11:13 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    Omg morniweg could you imagine, fans would storm the castle

  25. 25 laeagle said at 10:11 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    Dion Sanders

  26. 26 laeagle said at 10:11 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    Smarty Jones

  27. 27 ICDogg said at 11:28 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    I vote “Neigh”

  28. 28 laeagle said at 10:11 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    Heath Evans

  29. 29 Jamie Parker said at 10:15 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    Tommy Lawlor

  30. 30 the midatlantic said at 11:03 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    Barbaro

  31. 31 NinjaP said at 11:06 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    Katy Perry

  32. 32 Nick C said at 11:19 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    She may feel like Howie is a little too hot and cold for her, really yes and no.

  33. 33 Crus57 said at 8:31 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Left Shark

  34. 34 ICDogg said at 11:24 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    Coach McNabb

  35. 35 NoPedersonNoPedersonNoPederson said at 11:25 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    maybe THAT’S the plan for pederson…

  36. 36 ICDogg said at 11:25 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    Yep

  37. 37 NoPedersonNoPedersonNoPederson said at 11:26 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    still don’t want him within a 500mi radius of philly

  38. 38 doublgee said at 2:09 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Coach Howard (Hates The Duck) Roseman!?!?

    https://youtu.be/K4At4FnHDBo

  39. 39 Stephen E. said at 1:41 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Lovie Smith

  40. 40 kimsarah said at 2:03 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    I like Jon Gruden and Jimmie Johnson. Proven winners who have gotten wiser and have personalities that fit in here.

  41. 41 JoeBlow said at 2:18 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Chip Kelly?

  42. 42 Eagles_Fan_in_San_Fran said at 2:23 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    OK, here’s my /s list of other possible candidates:
    Jon Gruden
    Tony Dungy
    Bill Cowher
    Mike Holmgren
    Steve Mariucci
    Jimmie Johnson
    Mike Shanahan
    Herm Edwards
    John Madden
    Lane Kiffin
    Nick Saban
    Dabo Swinney
    Howie Roseman
    Al Davis’ Corpse

  43. 43 Bert's Bells said at 5:33 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Jerry Jones

  44. 44 DanJ3645 said at 5:13 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Matt Patricia?

  45. 45 DJH said at 8:09 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Did this dark horse candidate have a blue binder filled with stick figure drawings?

  46. 46 Gary Barnes said at 10:19 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    David Shaw?

  47. 47 Jamie Parker said at 10:05 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    According to PFR, Hue Jackson’s interview with the Dolphins was cancelled.

  48. 48 laeagle said at 10:11 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    Has the Gase Race ended before it ever truly began?

  49. 49 Jamie Parker said at 10:13 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    Probably. As ACViking pointed out before, those with 2nd interviews get the job.

  50. 50 ICDogg said at 11:27 PM on January 8th, 2016:

    Seems likely

  51. 51 laeagle said at 12:11 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Or, perhaps, is it because he’s the lead guy for the San Francisco job? Rumors are pointing that way.

    Rumors rumors rumors!

  52. 52 anon said at 3:29 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Could you imagine if kelly showed up for his intervew and said i’m going to cut your best skill players and run these 5 plays

  53. 53 anon said at 5:32 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    I’m a bradford guy, but listening to jameis’ press conference, it’s obvious what this team is lacking.

    http://www.buccaneers.com/videos/videos/Press_Conference_QB_Jameis_Winston/bbbe97a1-0cd7-4bda-b286-eadef7ad2529

  54. 54 Media Mike said at 5:36 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    A rapist?

  55. 55 anon said at 5:40 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    no wonder you hate the steelers

  56. 56 Media Mike said at 5:42 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    That is part of it.

  57. 57 Media Mike said at 5:42 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    If Peterson is the hire, can we keep Shurmur on to call the plays? Peterson isn’t the play-caller in KC, so I don’t want him learning both how to call plays and be the head coach on the job.

  58. 58 GaEagle1023 - Tom said at 6:01 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    I think it will be Pederson. He was with us in the past, and he is an Andy Reid guy, and since the Chip Kelly experiment failed, I believe Lurie will want to go back to the Andy Reid style. You might be right regarding Shurmur and that keeps Bradford in the mix

  59. 59 Howie Littlefinger said at 7:02 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    The andy reid style of not winning super bowls is almost as bad as the chip kelly style

  60. 60 ChoTime said at 9:05 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Interesting, want to think about that a little?

  61. 61 Howie Littlefinger said at 4:14 PM on January 9th, 2016:

    I’m not saying I don’t root for andy but he makes the same type of mistakes in KC he did here. Also remember when he pitched Juan as a DC? I hope Lurie remembers that. At the same time no one in KC knows what Pederson does there lol

  62. 62 GaEagle1023 - Tom said at 10:18 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    True that Howie – I want a guy who can draft and build it right. AR is telling Lurie to hire him and no SB is better than this in Luries mind I suppose

  63. 63 Media Mike said at 5:45 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Aside from wins and losses, the new head coach / regime must accomplish 3 things.

    1 – Immediately improve the O-line.
    2 – Eliminate the gutless / unfocused plays as evidenced by dropped passes, penalties, and turnovers.
    3 – Improve the D in key statistical situations such as red zone and 3rd down.

  64. 64 anon said at 6:05 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Might be time to put jp out to pasture — hes clearly smoking something that wouldn’t allow him to pass a pee test. his remarks on not being named all pro

    “Come on man this guy [Andrew Whitworth] is not better than me it must be politics 1st team all pro bull Shit I take it personal eagle life”

    “Man come on be real 1st team all pro who grades this stuff”

    “Going to grind no matter what put any left tackle in Philly and see what happens withworth will not make in Philly”

    “What u mean one bad year. Everybody call this a bad year grade me out and grade them I got hurt but didn’t give up much as him come on man be real I play in philly”

    “Real recognize real eagle life I am done”

  65. 65 Media Mike said at 6:08 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    I don’t mind Peters being upset, but this isn’t a year I’d give him that type of voting. We’ll see what next year holds at guard for him.

  66. 66 Bert's Bells said at 6:28 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    He’s washed up.

  67. 67 Media Mike said at 6:29 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    At LT, yes. But I’d love to have him back at his dead money $ as his salary (credit to D3 football for that idea) at either RT or G. And if he sucks there in camp we can still cut him.

  68. 68 Fufina said at 6:56 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Well he has battled a lot of knocks/injuries this year but i would agree his best days are behind him. This is a hard one for the new coaching staff – he is a HOF type guy with massive pride and self confidence.

    You could keep him into camp and then decide to cut him at 53 man point if you drafted someone and Peters struggles (best thing for the Eagles), but that is not the way to treat a player as respected league wide as Peters.

    Do you ride one final year with him and try and persuade him to retire? Or do you cut him before free agency so he can get one final deal?

    I have no idea frankly and will be interesting to see how this organisation goes about it.

  69. 69 Bert's Bells said at 9:21 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    100% tough call.

    Would be ideal to move him for a mid-round pick, or package him to move up for a LT in the first.

    This is where the non-existent drafting of OL and Stoutlands inability to develop talent are really hurting.

  70. 70 Media Mike said at 6:11 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    A lucky draft with Goff.
    And I keep picking Ngakoue (to play DE here in a 4-3 I assume) because he owned Conklin, Decker, and Scherff over the last two years in Big 10 play.

    Round 1 Pick 13: Jared Goff, QB, California (A+)
    Round 3 Pick 13: Joshua Garnett, OG, Stanford (B+)
    Round 3 Pick 16: Josh Doctson, WR, TCU (A+)
    Round 4 Pick 13: Yannick Ngakoue, OLB, Maryland (A-)
    Round 5 Pick 13: Anthony Zettel, DE, Penn State (A+)
    Round 5 Pick 21: Jonathan Williams, RB, Arkansas (A+)
    Round 6 Pick 13: Travis Feeney, OLB, Washington (B+)
    Round 7 Pick 13: Taveze Calhoun, CB, Mississippi State (A+)
    Round 7 Pick 31: Mekale McKay, WR, Cincinnati (A+)

  71. 71 Media Mike said at 6:18 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    And a trade down for Goff draft

    Round 1 Pick 20 (NYJ): Carson Wentz, QB, North Dakota State (B)
    Round 2 Pick 20 (NYJ): Jason Spriggs, OT, Indiana (A)
    Round 3 Pick 13: Joshua Garnett, OG, Stanford (B+)
    Round 3 Pick 16: Jayron Kearse, SS, Clemson (A+)
    Round 3 Pick 20 (NYJ): Dan Voltz, C, Wisconsin (A+)
    Round 4 Pick 13: Yannick Ngakoue, OLB, Maryland (A-)
    Round 5 Pick 13: D.J. White, CB, Georgia Tech (A)
    Round 5 Pick 21: Jordan Williams, WR, Ball State (A+)
    Round 6 Pick 13: Aaron Green, RB, TCU (A+)
    Round 7 Pick 13: Travis Feeney, OLB, Washington (A+)
    Round 7 Pick 31: Montravius Adams, DT, Auburn (A+)

  72. 72 Will:↑↑↓↓←→←→BA said at 9:17 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Not enough OL

  73. 73 Eagles News: Randall Cunningham will be inducted into College Football Hall of Fame class 2016 - said at 6:26 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    […] Agent Games – Iggles BlitzI don’t know anything for a fact, but it sure feels like Adam Gase’s agent is using the media to create a sense of desperation in regard to his client. The Eagles were the team that loved his client so suddenly he wanted the Dolphins (and others) to fear losing him. Now it is the Dolphins who might sign Gase so the Eagles (and others) need to fear losing him. This happens until someone makes a good enough offer. Gase’s agent is Jimmy Sexton. He will play games with the media when it helps his client. This feels like one of those times. I could be wrong, but it just feels that way. […]

  74. 74 Media Mike said at 6:38 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Wow, Marshawn Lynch is out for Sunday’s game. Felt like he couldn’t go.

    Hope that means the extra week of rest he’ll get will make Seattle even more likely to keep their responsibility of knocking Carolina out of the playoffs next week.

  75. 75 Fufina said at 6:51 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Think the Game with the Vikings could go sideways. I mean it is going to be ungodly cold. Not sure how well people will be able to catch and throw the ball and in that situation i would back the vikings to get it done.

  76. 76 Media Mike said at 6:52 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    How does that help getting Carolina knocked out of the playoffs in the division round?

  77. 77 Fufina said at 7:01 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Well i expect Zona would beat them in the championship round. But why the need of Carolina getting beat? I am far more worried about the skins going on a hot run… I think they beat Greenbay and from there who knows.

  78. 78 Media Mike said at 7:03 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Because Scam Newton is the anti-Christ and I don’t want to deal with an extended period of him continued to being knob-slobbed by reporters.

  79. 79 RobNE said at 7:55 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    The hate is strong in this one.

  80. 80 Greg Richards said at 7:22 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Seems like the mystery candidate has been reported. Per local NY guys and confirmed by FOX’s Mike Garafalo, the Eagles have asked the Giants permisssion to talk to two-time Super Bowl champion Tom Coughlin.

    I endorse this fully. I know he’s older, but the guy can coach. It’d be even better if the Giants hired someone other than McAdoo, and he came with Coughlin as OC. His problems with the Giants were a relatively poor job done by their GM Jerry Reese and an unprecedented amount of injuries. Chip’s gone but his sports science employees are still here and we had a minimal amount of injuries compared to the rest of the league. As Reid showed, sometimes a coach groes stale in one town and just needs a fresh start elsewhere. I know Coughlin is 70, but he seems like he’s in fine health. As long as he’s still mentally spry, no reason to at least not talk to him. Even if you don’t hire him, he can provide valuable insight about his impression of your personnel, what it takes to win in the league, McAdoo if you might make him HC, etcetera.

  81. 81 Anders said at 7:27 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Coughlin can coach? The Eagles are 13-3 against them since 2008, they havnt even reached the playoff since 2011.

  82. 82 Greg Richards said at 7:29 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Reid fell off at the end too. Really look at their team. Jerry Reese is horrible, especially on defense. He also has struggled bringing in quality OL. They have had tons of injuries for at least the past 3 years, particularly in the secondary.

  83. 83 Anders said at 7:31 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    You do not think Coughlin have anything to do with picks like Ereck Flowers or Collins?

    I also think the injuries is part because of Coughlin.

    Even before 2011, Coughlin was never as good a coach as Reid.

  84. 84 Greg Richards said at 7:37 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    The Giants traditionally employ more of the traditional true GM, coach who just coaches structure. Without being inside that organization, impossible to say what level of input he had into the draft picks.

  85. 85 Anders said at 8:02 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    I still think any coach as a say in what type of players he wants

  86. 86 Media Mike said at 7:29 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    The Giants have been guilty of the same mistake ridden football over the last few years that I’ve been tired of seeing here. I’d rather not go down that road, but I like the interview because you’ll be able to pick up on some in-division intel on our team.

  87. 87 Rob Jarratt said at 7:43 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Very intriguing. It’s funny how I, along with a large gaggle of posters, have characterized Coughlin as somewhat of a bumbling, crotchety, old-school coach, who throws his clipboard to the ground and turns beet-red when a call goes against the team. And yet, he has two SB rings, is highly respected, handled the largest media circus with aplomb, and had a long tenure with the Giants organization.

    He just might be the right person for the job. The Eagles need stability at the HC level. Coughlin should fill that requirement. Call me mostly on board, if it happens.

  88. 88 Ray888 said at 8:47 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    “Beet red” is most likely a skin condition called rosacea; if he doesn’t actually have it full blown, he has the early stages of it. It effects fair-skinned individuals where the elasticity in the blood vessels in the face has been lost. So if he sweats, has hot food, takes a hot shower, or gets mad at a ref, or finds himself in a tense situation, his blood vessels expand in his face. He gets red. Unlike most people, he stays red. It does make him easy to read. If he turns red as soon as he begins talking to Roseman, it probably isn’t a good fit.

  89. 89 Fufina said at 8:07 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    I simply refuse to believe this is a truly ‘real’ interview and not more of a fact finding and tweaking of the Giants. at 69 Coughlin cannot come in and realistically rebuild a program, find a QB as a long term option. If we were Denver last year it would make sense… bring in an experienced play off winning coach to try and get us over the hump. But for the Eagles i doubt it is a really realistic option.

  90. 90 Greg Richards said at 8:20 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Adam Schefter
    ‏@AdamSchefter

    7m7 minutes ago

    Eagles requesting permission from Giants to interview Tom Coughlin, per sources. Interview likely to occur Monday, before owners meeting.

    Adam Schefter
    ‏@AdamSchefter

    4m4 minutes ago

    Eagles must get permission from Giants to interview Tom Coughlin being that he stepped down with year on deal. Giants will not stand in way.

  91. 91 Greg Richards said at 8:22 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    I think the Eagles are already sold on Bradford as their long-term option. We’ll see. I don’t think coaching staff was about x’s and o’s it was about Kelly being a jerk who alienated Lurie, Roseman, and all the players.

  92. 92 jshort said at 8:41 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Is it a known fact that all the players disliked Kelly, or are we talking hand full, half the team, etc? Think you could go to any team and find a few players that don’t like their coach.

  93. 93 Greg Richards said at 8:44 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Not saying it was the whole team, but it was clearly more than a few players and it extended to other people in the organization including most importantly the owner.

  94. 94 jshort said at 8:53 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    I definitely get the owner. I’m just wondering how bad was it. Seemed very odd to me when reported, Jeff was firing up the troops for the NE game. idk

  95. 95 Gary Barnes said at 10:31 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    I’d interview Coughlin to pick his brain on the Giants/NFL, but I would be very skeptical about his mental awareness at his advanced age and it would not be a long term hire which is a negative IMO. I want a HC who will win here for 10+ years again. Plus Coughlin runs very predictable and easy to beat schemes; it has been only when he has elite talent that the Giants won anything. The Eagles knew how to beat Coughlin and did it regularly; Coughlin very rarely adapted at all. Plus I’m not sure if there is a team who turned the ball over more or made as many stupid mistakes as his Giants.

  96. 96 Midnight_Greenville said at 8:25 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Can someone explain to me the advantages of Pederson over Shurmur? Both from AR coaching tree, but Shurmur has head coaching experience, has more local ties, knows this offense and this personnel already, understands the concepts of Chip’s offense that work and those that don’t, would have a good chance of keeping the other coordinators and coaches that are worth keeping, and most importantly Bradford lobbied for him to be considered (assuming they want Bradford back). What does Pederson offer? He’s an OC who doesn’t call plays, who has no track record, who oversees an offense that is not particularly prolific, who has never been a head coach. If the goal is truly not to completely rebuild, it would seem you have a much better chance keeping some continuity in terms of personnel, scheme, and coaching.

  97. 97 Greg Richards said at 8:35 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    I don’t know if you’re familiar with Dan Hatman, but in reply to someone talking about Pederson…

    Dan Hatman
    ‏@Dan_Hatman

    6 Jun 2015

    @JinxSavage He was a fantastic football mind to be around in Philly. Also a tremendous human being. Players gravitate to him.

  98. 98 Fufina said at 9:20 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    I know nothing about most of these coaches really – only guys i can assess reasonably are college coaches and retreads… because they have actually done the job!

    But if they hire Pederson they do it from a position of strength since he has been in and around the team extensively and they know him as a person and his skill set.

  99. 99 Gary Barnes said at 10:41 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    KC’s offense is 4th in the AFC and 9th in the NFL for points, hardly a bad offense.

    I do not like Shurmur or Pederson for our HC job, but the Reid connection with Lurie/Roseman does carry weight (pun intended) and Shurmur, for all the opportunities he has gotten, has not produced many good results.

    As the OC here, our offense was very good in 2013, terribly inconsistent in 2014 and horrific in 2015. Most will blame that all on Chip, but Shurmur certainly played a part.

  100. 100 Greg Richards said at 9:12 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Ian Rapoport
    ‏@RapSheet

    9s10 seconds ago

    The #Eagles are set to speak with #Giants coach Tom Coughlin on Monday night, source said. More of a feeling-out for both than an interview.

    1 retweet

    1 like

  101. 101 RobNE said at 9:18 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    So seems like eagles are not chasing Gase

  102. 102 Fufina said at 9:20 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    We did not appear to be chasing Chip either. We will interview our key targets and then strike at which ever they rank highest and move from there.

    Until he signs elsewhere he is still a strong chance to be the next head coach.

  103. 103 Allen3000 said at 9:19 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    The last thing I want the front office/Lurie to do is engage in a bidding war and/or make a move out of panic. Be patient. There are no slam-dunk/can’t miss coaching prospects imo.

    Maybe I’m being naive here, but is $$$ really that important of a factor in choosing a team as a coach? I certainly understand why a player would go for $ since their time in the league is so precious and they need to maximize their earnings. I would imagine most coaches would value long term stability and the opportunity to win as more important factors. After all, you need to establish yourself as a winning coach to extend your stay as a HC in the NFL. Going to a team/organization that gives you the best opportunity to do so seems to be the most logical decision. However, every individual is different.

    All this to say, I just want the Eagles front office to be patient and go with a coaching candidate who clearly wants to be here for the long term and establish a winning culture here. I don’t want a coach who needs a constant ego stroking.

  104. 104 Bert's Bells said at 9:37 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Florida has no stare income tax, right?

    That’s already a cash advantage.

  105. 105 Fufina said at 9:43 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    There is no coach salary cap. Lurie can just offer more money if he wants to (has in the past).

  106. 106 Greg Richards said at 9:50 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    I honestly don’t think Gase is worth getting into a battle over.

  107. 107 BlindChow said at 10:36 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    I agree about the bidding war. Arians was one of the last coaches hired (I think?), wasn’t a hot name, and turned out the be the best new coaching hire that year.

  108. 108 Greg Richards said at 9:32 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Time to give up on Gase. Miami has cancelled all their other interviews.

  109. 109 Patrick said at 9:41 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    I cannot believe we let him leave the building, especially because we wanted to interview Doug Pederson.

  110. 110 Fufina said at 9:44 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Lets see how this all works out first, since plenty of things can happen between now and him signing for the dolphins.

  111. 111 Patrick said at 9:47 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Schefter reporting they’re close, Gase is off the market.

    Obviously Gase is not a can’t miss candidate, IMO he would need to have had HC experience for that, but IMO he is far and above better than the rest of the candidates.

  112. 112 RC5000 said at 10:08 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    I don’t really know if he is better from afar much less far better. How would you know?

  113. 113 Patrick said at 10:12 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    My opinion compared with the fact every single team pretty much went all out for Gase and reports came out that the Eagles and now Dolphins loved him. Fair enough if you dont agree, but occam razor points towards you being wrong.

    No candidate has been chased as much and aggressively as Gase. Had there been mutible reports of him sucking up the interviews, that could change, but the opposite happened, everyone loved him.

  114. 114 BlindChow said at 10:25 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    These “reports” are usually planted by agents to drive up demand for their clients. We don’t know the extent of the real interest in Gase.

    Occam’s razor doesn’t state you must deny realities about the state of the business and just swallow everything you read on the internet.

  115. 115 Patrick said at 10:30 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    I’d agree if it was 1 report, but basically every Philly media guy said their sources had the Eagles loving Gase. Now the Dolphins will hire him. We also know for a fact who interviewed him.

    At some point, you cannot blame everything on agents talking up clients. But keep telling yourself that i’m the one failling to sort information on the internet.

  116. 116 BlindChow said at 10:34 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Actually, the Philly media were the ones debunking the claims from the national guys. They painted the interest as far less than the original reports suggested.

    (That still could be the Eagles planting stories to hide their own interest, though, so you never know…)

  117. 117 Greg Richards said at 9:49 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    You want to have a coaching search with 1 interview outside the building? Gase was a good coordinator, but good coordinators suck as head coaches all the time. Do a thorough search and find the right fit. Don’t let your money burn a hole in your pocket.

  118. 118 Patrick said at 9:55 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    I want to have a coaching search that ends with the Eagles getting the best guy. IMO thats Gase, and seeing the people the Eagles interviewed and the reports about Gase’s interview, it looks like the Eagles felt the same way.

    Would it have been better to have interviewed other candidates, sure, but if Gase blew you away? End of coaching search. Especially when you’re competing with other teams and the other candidates are much less attractive. Coughlin and Pederson? I’ll pass.

    Its not Gase’s fault that the Eagles wasted to interviews on in house candidates, why should he wait on the Eagles to finish fucking about?

  119. 119 Greg Richards said at 10:02 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Gase doesn’t have the track record to automatically deem him the “top choice” and not investigate the other candidates thoroughly.

  120. 120 Patrick said at 10:10 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    He is by no means a can’t miss candidate I agree, he needs HC experience for that. He is far and away the best available option, he is basically a QB whisperer and a lot of articles written by people a lot smarter than me(I personally enjoy Martz take on him), paints him as a brilliant offensive mind. He also looks like by far the best potential guy.

    Sadly, my 2 can’t miss candidates, Sean Payton and David Shaw, arent leaving. I guess we could try to convince Shaw like we did Chip, but seems impossible.

    Obviously Gase didn’t impress enough to go all out, but reports did come out about us really feeling him as our franchise. I feel like we will end up settling for a guy we dont like as much, because we either screwed up our planning or plainly screwed around.

  121. 121 Greg Richards said at 10:19 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Just because he chose another team, it doesn’t necessarily mean the Eagles screwed up anything. His agent isn’t going to allow him to only take one interview and not explore his other options. So it’s not as simple as saying “Don’t let him leave the building!”

    Let’s look at this objectively: MIA has a QB in place. Some love his potential, some don’t but there is a degree of certainty. With the Eagles, you either have to convince and pay for Bradford to sign an extension or use a good chunk of your cap space on what could potentially be only a 1-year solution in franchise tagging Bradford. Both front offices have somewhat of a record of front office dysfunction. While I’d give the Eagles the advantage of having more stable ownership and being closer to his wive’s hometown, the Dolphins have the advantage of better weather, beaches, and no state income taxes.

    I can easily see how Gase would conclude that Miami is the better option. It doesn’t necessarily mean that the Eagles did anything wrong or could have done anything to change his mind.

  122. 122 RC5000 said at 10:14 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    I can see being okay with the hire but I don’t get the hard on you have for him.

  123. 123 Patrick said at 10:16 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Its more a realistic view of the other possibilities which I think look somewhat horrible compared to Gase at least being potentially a dominant offensive mind.

  124. 124 jshort said at 10:05 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Good. Come on, What’s his claim to fame.

  125. 125 E.A.G.L.E.S said at 9:48 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Sounds like reporters are a bunch of tools.

  126. 126 Greg Richards said at 10:00 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Matt Lombardo
    ‏@MattLombardo975

    13m13 minutes ago

    Tom Coughlin’s interview with the #Eagles is more than background on Ben McAdoo. He is a legitimate candidate for the job. #NFL

    11 retweets

    13 likes

  127. 127 Gary Barnes said at 10:14 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    And as long as the media companies continue to reward their people for being first instead of accurate and us in the general public continue to give them credence, it will only get worse.

    It would be great if the media members who were consistently wrong (the vast majority of them) were held accountable, the media companies forced their people to do their homework/check sources and follow up on facts and the general public were more discerning about what is real and what is spin, but that is not the world we live in nor the world we demand to live in unfortunately.

  128. 128 BlindChow said at 10:31 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    Let’s hope Gase is the next Gus. Success as a coordinator, but three years later is still just spinning his wheels as a HC.

  129. 129 Greg Richards said at 10:34 AM on January 9th, 2016:

    New thread up.