As things currently stand, seven of the league’s 32 head-coaching jobs are open.
That means at some point, the Eagles could very well be competing with one or two other teams for the same candidate (admit it, you’d be intrigued by a Jeffrey Lurie/Howie Roseman vs. Joe Banner showdown).
So in this space, we’ll track which candidates are scheduled to interview with which teams. The list will be updated constantly as new reports surface.
Well, that didn’t take long.
One day after being dismissed by the Eagles, Andy Reid is close to becoming head coach of the Arizona Cardinals, according to multiple reports.
Arizona’s vice president of media relations Mark Dalton says that the team has reached out to Reid but has not yet met with him, and that the club will interview Broncos offensive coordinator Mike McCoy over the weekend.
It was a time for reflection. LeSean McCoy looked visibly upset that he would no longer be playing for Andy Reid. As one of the building blocks going forward, he spoke up and said some of his teammates made too many excuses.
And then there was Jeremy Maclin, the former first-round pick who was in the same draft class as McCoy. Maclin’s career began with consecutive trips to the playoffs, but he’s never been part of a team that advanced past the first round.
“I think change needs to come from everywhere,” Maclin said, when asked if the Eagles’ problem had more to do with personnel or attitude. “I think we’re definitely a talented group of guys individually. I think the team unity probably wasn’t there this year. I think we’ve got to respect each other. If you respect somebody, you’re more willing to go out there and play for that person or play for a purpose. I think the lack of respect that maybe some guys have for other guys definitely hurt us.”
Jeffrey Lurie confessed at Monday’s press conference that the organization began getting away from some of its core philosophies over the last few years in an attempt to chase down the Lombardi Trophy that always seemed just out of their grasp. Part of their methodology that was abandoned to a certain extent was: “Don’t do necessarily what is popular, but do what’s right.”
That was how Lurie approached the head coaching search the last time around. He has no championships to show for it, but you would have to say that the Eagles owner got it right when he selected the unknown Andy Reid.
The Eagles apparently like what they’ve seen from the 13-3 Falcons this season.
Earlier today, a report surfaced that they’d take a look at Atlanta offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter. And now, Jay Glazer of FoxSports.com reports that the team has asked for permission to interview Falcons defensive coordinator Mike Nolan and special teams coordinator Keith Armstrong.
Andy Reid is no longer the head coach of the Eagles.
After 14 seasons that pushed the organization to new heights but never to the summit, Jeffrey Lurie finally parted ways with the man that will be widely considered the best Eagles head coach of all time.
Lurie made it official Monday after weeks of speculation. His press conference, originally scheduled for noon, has been moved to 1 p.m.
“Andy Reid won the most games of any head coach in Eagles’ history and he is someone I respect greatly and will remain friends with for many years to come,” Lurie said in a statement. “But, it is time for the Eagles to move in a new direction. Andy leaves us with a winning tradition that we can build upon. And we are very excited about the future.
“The search for the new coach of the Philadelphia Eagles will begin immediately.”
With the Andy Reid era coming to a close, we reached out to a handful of former Reid players in hopes they would share a personal story about their old coach, and to get their thoughts on where it went wrong.
Here is what they had to say:
Andy Reid stood alone on the sideline. With his hands on his hips, in front of a half-empty stadium, he waited for David Carr to take one final knee at the Eagles’ 44-yard-line before strolling towards midfield.
The clock showed zeroes, Reid shook hands with Tom Coughlin, and another chapter in this franchise’s history came to a close.
A tale that started on Jan. 11, 1999 has reached its conclusion. Many will try today to put Reid’s 14-year tenure into perspective: 140 wins, 102 losses and one tie. Nine playoff appearances, five NFC championship games and one Super Bowl appearance.
While things fell apart at the end – 4-12 this season, 12-20 in the last two – Reid’s relationships with his players will define his legacy here.
Jason Avant was posed this question following the 42-7 loss to the Giants, which marked both the end of the season and Andy Reid‘s run as head coach of the Eagles:
Are there not enough character guys on this team anymore?
“I would say that’s true,” Avant replied.
The veteran receiver tried to cut himself off several times during his session with a group of reporters before getting too critical of his teammates, then pressed on. He was one of a handful of Eagles that couldn’t hide their emotions any longer. Some of the guys that line up beside them just aren’t cut from the same cloth.
Somewhere along the line, Michael Vick lost track of the Eagles’ record.
“If you finish with four or five wins, there’s nothing to be happy about,” the Eagles quarterback said after Sunday’s 42-7 loss to the Giants. “There’s nothing to be proud of. You don’t go through training camp to go…5-11?”
A reporter reminded him he was one win too generous, and that the Eagles actually finished 4-12.
But the truth is, when you have a season like the Eagles just had, your record stops mattering long before Week 17.
Playing for the first time since suffering a concussion on Nov. 11, Vick went 19-for-35 for 197 yards, a touchdown and an interception. In many ways, Sunday’s outing looked like his first nine starts of the season.
Performance is one thing, but effort is a different matter entirely. After the game Sunday, a frustrated Vick seemed to question the effort of his teammates.
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Sheil Kapadia has been writing about the Eagles since 2008. His previous Philly.com blog, Moving the Chains, was named one of the best in the state by the Associated Press. Sheil's main joys in life are family, football and finding good parking spots.
Tim McManus is a bulldog reporter with a nose for news and story angles that will get people talking. He'll talk about it himself on 97.5 The Fanatic, where he serves as a host and Eagles beat reporter. Tim, an award-winning journalist, will be with the team around the clock.
