The head coach was fired after five seasons and led the franchise to a Super Bowl title
PHILADELPHIA – Philadelphia Eagles fired head coach Doug Pederson, the team announced on Monday, ending a partnership that yielded the first and only Super Bowl title in the city’s history.
Pederson was expected to remain as a coach despite ending the season 4-11-1, but multiple encounters with owner Jeffrey Lurie over the past week left his boss wary of Pederson’s clear vision on how to tackle. the myriad of problems facing the teamthe sources told ESPNFrom driving the Carson Wentz situation to resolving an offense that finished 26th in runs scored (20.9 per game) and 28th in passing yards (207 yards per game) in 2020.
Lurie was also not convinced of Pederson’s plans regarding his staff of aides, sources said. Pederson lobbied for the passing coordinator / quarterbacks coach Press Taylor to be elevated to offensive coordinator instead of bringing in a more established candidate. The problem of filling the void left by defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz, who plans to take a year away from football in 2021, was also unsolved.
– Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) January 11, 2021
“I’ve been evaluating everything from the past year over the past few weeks and looking ahead. We are very disappointed with the way our season has ended and would like to change things not only for the next season, but also for the future of the franchise. , “Lurie said in a statement.”Coach Pederson and I had the opportunity to sit down and discuss what that collective vision would look like in the future. After taking some time to think about these conversations, I think it’s best for both of us to part ways..
“I’ve known Doug and his family for over 20 years and they will always be a family to me. I have a lot of respect for him and for everything we’ve accomplished together over the past five seasons. Everyone in the organization understands the type of man and coach who he is and how much he means to all of us, as well as to the city of Philadelphia We all look forward to the day he is inducted into the Eagles Hall of Fame as a Super Bowl-winning head coach and we are confident he will succeed with his next team.
“But as a leader of this organization, I have to do what I think is best for everyone as we look to the future and move on to our next chapter. I know we have to do work to get back where we want to be, but I also think we have an exceptionally strong group of people in this organization who can help prepare us for future success. ”
Wentz had a dramatic setback in his fifth year and was replaced by rookie Jalen Hurts during the last quarter of the season. Wentz plans to request an off-season trade because his relationship with Pederson has been irretrievably broken, according to league sources. Trust issues between the two cut both ways, the sources said, though Pederson recently noted that his relationship with Wentz was fine.
Sources describe a crime without an identity in 2020, due in part to a sizeable and disparate group of assistants and consultants who arrived off-season and struggled to be on the same page. The lack of a central vision of what the offense should look like caused the quarterback position to go uphill, and all the voices created a dissonance for both Pederson and Wentz, sources said.
As for Hurts, who was drafted in the second round of draft last April, there was no clarity from Pederson as to whether he felt the franchise had its quarterback of the future if the Eagles parted ways with Wentz. The handling of the last game of the season with Hurts benched for Nate Sudfeld’s participation in a 20-14 loss against Washington also raised the question of whether Pederson had lost the confidence of his players.
Pederson became the eighth head coach to win a Super Bowl in his first two years in office when the Eagles defeated the New England Patriots to win the Lombardi Trophy in the 2017 season. That was the first of three consecutive appearances. in the playoffs for the Eagles under Pederson before everything derailed in 2020. Pederson was 46-39-1 over five seasons with the Eagles, including four playoff wins.
Information from Chris Mortensen was used in writing this note.