Iggles Blitz

by Tommy Lawlor

About Stout

Posted April 29th, 2026 | No Comments »

Jeff Stoutland is a great coach. Some will argue he’s the best OL coach in NFL history. Joe Bugel, Bobb McKittrick, Dante Scarnecchia, Howard Mudd, Jim Hanifan, Hudson Houck, Art McNally, Jim Myers, Ollie Spencer and some others would also be candidates. We don’t want to get caught up too much in the moment. Stout is the hot name we all know, but NFL history is full of great OL coaches who produced legendary blockers and some dominant OLs.

Stout built an amazing connection to his players. Jason Kelce’s retirement speech was incredibly moving, especially when he talked about Stout.

Stout was coach, mentor and father figure to his players.

Stout didn’t just connect with Kelce. He was able to forge special bonds with many players over the years. He coached his players hard. Some could handle that, some couldn’t. If you can’t handle tough coaching, how the hell are you going to handle Myles Garrett or Aaron Donald? He wanted the best for his guys, on and off the field. He wanted to help them grow as men, not just players.

Jeff Stoutland was special. He was one of a kind, a unicorn. The Eagles were lucky to have his services for more than a decade. He helped them to win a pair of Super Bowls and go on a special run that had 3 SB appearances in a decade. There were only two appearances in the team’s history before his arrival.

Now let’s also understand that Stoutland was given great resources to work with. He inherited an All-Pro LT in Jason Peters. He got Jason Kelce after two years of good coaching and development by Howard Mudd. Todd Herremans was a proven player at multiple positions when Stout took over. Evan Mathis was an emerging star. Lane Johnson was the #4 pick in the 2013 draft. He was raw, but a rare talent. The Eagles spent big money on free agent OG Brandon Brooks in 2016. They spent second round picks on Landon Dickerson and Cam Jurgens. Isaac Seumalo was a third round pick. Jack Driscoll, who proved to be a key backup, was taken in the fourth round.

Stout took these resources and built the Eagles the best OL in the league on a regular basis. The only thing that really slowed him down was injuries (and Lane’s 10-game suspension in 2016). Stout delivered.

So how can the Eagles move on from him?

The offense needed to change. That required everyone involved to buy in and embrace the change. Stout has served as the team’s run game coordinator in recent seasons. I’m guessing he didn’t want to change much of his side of things. I was also troubled by his recent comments.

We all agree that the play-calling last season left a lot to be desired. But the biggest problem for the offense was unquestionably the play of the OL, specifically Landon Dickerson and Cam Jurgens. They tried to play their way through incredibly limiting injuries and the result was the worst OL play we’ve seen since 2020.

The OL struggled to consistently block well in the run game. And the Eagles offense was built around the run game. Barkley getting shut down led to a lof of 2nd and long and 3rd and long situations. Patullo didn’t have great options. The offense ran well in 2024 so Kellen Moore operated out of much more favorable situations. That opened up more of the playbook. Think about how the Tush Push eroded. That was blocking more than defenses.

I respect the hell out of Dickerson and Jurgens for playing through their injuries and doing whatever they could for their teammates. Stout was loyal to them and wanted to stick with his guys. He should have been loyal to the overall team. That would have meant benching his stars and going with Brett Toth at LG and Drew Kendall at C. I honestly believe they would have been an upgrade because they were healthy. Dickerson and Jurgens were dealing with severe pain and discomfort. That limited their ability to function well.

I wish Stoutland had taken some accountability and talked about the OL’s struggles. Always point the finger at the guy in the mirror first and ask what you could have done better. This isn’t to absolve Patullo, but he’s become a convenient excuse for too many people who didn’t do their part. Patullo didn’t ask for significant OL injuries. He didn’t plan on Dallas Goedert forgetting how to block. He didn’t expect AJ Brown to mentally check out at times. The offense was a mess for multiple reasons. If Stout thought running it back, but adding a new play-caller would solve everything, he was wrong. Change was needed and it is coming.

Sean Mannion will bring his version of the McVay/Shanahan offense to Philly. The Eagles hired Chris Kuper to be the new OL coach because he’s got experience in the scheme and they felt like he could be a good teacher. He will be given the same kind of resources as Stout. We’ll have to wait and see if he can deliver.

It is important to note the Eagles have had good OL play for most of the past 30 years. They have had good OL coaches throughout that time. Bill Callahan worked for Ray Rhodes and cobbled together groups that out-performed their talent. Juan Castillo ran the OL for most of the Andy Reid era. He did a good job. He was succeeded by Howard Mudd, who worked his magic for a couple of seasons. Then came Stout. Part of Stout’s success was the Eagles organizational commitment to good OL play. That commitment hasn’t changed.

Jeff Stoutland is a great OL coach. But the Eagles had success before him and will have success after him. If Dickerson, Jurgens and Johnson are healthy, this could be the best OL in the league in 2026, even without their legendary leader. Kuper got a great job and with that comes great responsibility. We’ll have to wait and see if he’s ready for that. Can he get the OL back on track? Can he sustain success? Can he develop some of the young guys he’ll have to work with? Can he help the team get back to the Super Bowl? Those are the expectations.

I’ll be interested to see what happens with Stout in 2027. The Bengals and Texans should go hard after him. They’ve had OL issues for years and could use a great coach like him to rebuild their OLs. I would love to see Stout do something more league-wide. The NFL struggles to find and develop OL. Hire Stout and have him assist all 32 teams. He could visit OTAs and Training Camps to work with coaches and players. Have him go to the Shrine Game and Senior Bowl. Have him at the Combine. Have him work with the International Players Program. We’ll have to wait and see what the future holds.

*****

Speaking of offensive linemen.

Brandon is absolutely right. There is more to Bell than just size. That part overwhelms you because he’s so big, but the dude can play. He’s legit.

*****

There wasn’t much of a market for McKee during the draft. That could easily change over the next few months. If Rodgers doesn’t return, are the Steelers really prepared for Mason Rudolph, Will Howard or rookie Drew Allar to start?

There are other teams who could find themselves needing a QB. That’s why Howie went on record to say he’s willing to keep four of them. He wants the league to know McKee isn’t going anywhere unless the offer is right. He’s too valuable to the Eagles to just give away.

*****

Howie and his staff remain salary cap magicians.

There is a real difference in those deals. Hopefully you can appreciate why Howie didn’t want to top Phillips offer, but was still willing to spend big on Greenard.

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