With Jim Washburn in place as the defensive line coach, the only vacancy left on the Philadelphia Eagles' coaching staff is defensive coordinator.

Eagles current secondary coach Dick Jauron interviewed with the Cleveland Browns and looks likely to land there with new head coach Pat Shurmur.

The other big name mentioned in connection with the job, Jim Mora, Jr., was expected to land with the Denver Broncos but recently left Denver without signing a contract.

That had some in Philly thinking he was on his way to becoming Sean McDermott's successor, but now it's looking like the younger Mora won't be heading anywhere except back to the NFL Network set.

"Just got a call from Jim Mora Jr.," FOX's Jay Glazer tweeted, "who said he's decided to take his name out of Denver & Philly jobs, didn't think they're right fit right now. [Mora] still wants to coach but wanted to take another year off before returning."


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Is Reid taking too long to hire a new coordinator?


Since head coach Andy Reid finally parted ways with former defensive coordinator Sean McDermott, a couple names have been flying around regarding McDermott's successor.

Among the names being kicked around are the younger Jim Mora and defensive backs coach Dick Jauron, but it's looking like both could be off the list very soon. The Denver Post is reporting that Jim Mora could be signing on with John Fox and the Broncos, and the Cleveland Plain Dealer is reporting that Jauron is interviewing to be the Browns' defensive coordinator.

Word is that the Browns are looking for a guy with experience to help the young, first-time head coach Pat Shurmur. And with Mike Holmgren having a hand in the interviewing, there's a very good chance Jauron will be offered the job.

If both of those guys are crossed off the list, the only other candidate mentioned is former Arizona Cardinals defensive coordinator Bill Davis. I'm not exactly sure why they'd want the guy responsible for that train wreck, but he would be the only guy left who has been mentioned in connection with the job.

Of course, there's always the possibility with Reid that there are 15-20 other people who just haven't been revealed. One of those guys could be linebackers coach Bill Shuey.

The only problem with Shuey is his youth and inexperience. It seems like the team is more interested in bringing in someone with a resume' rather than promoting a promising young positional coach as they did with McDermott.

Deciding who is going to be the defensive coordinator is a huge decision, so Reid must do his due diligence before pulling the trigger. However, he must also make sure he does it in a timely manner before all the worth-while candidates are off the market.
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Firing McDermott is a move about 8 weeks overdue.


According to ESPN's Chris Mortenson, Philadelphia Eagles head coach Andy Reid has fired defensive coordinator Sean McDermott.

The news comes just a few days after Reid announced that McDermott would be back for the 2011 season, and just a day after reports surfaced that Reid would not consider demoting McDermott in order to promote defensive backs coach Dick Jauron.

So either McDermott was staying, or he was going to be heading elsewhere. Fortunately for Philly, he'll be heading elsewhere.

Under McDermott this season, the Eagles' defense was historically bad. They allowed opposing offenses to score nearly 80 percent of the time they reached the red zone -- the worst the NFL had seen in about a quarter century -- and allowed over 30 passing touchdowns.

The skill on the defensive side of the ball wasn't great this season and the team did fight through a few injuries, but the team was a lot better than McDermott made them look. He played a lot of soft coverages and at times flat-out refused to blitz even when it was working.

He played not to get beat rather than to win. He completely abandoned Jim Johnson's way of thinking and was not yet refined enough in his own ways to make them work.

Everyone talked about McDermott as a JJ disciple, but the truth is that distinction belongs to current St. Louis Rams head coach Steve Spagnuolo, and not McDermott.

Next step for the Eagles is finding a new coordinator. The most likely candidate right now is Jauron since he's already on the staff and Reid has continuously shown that he loves having his old buddies alongside him on game days.

Linebackers coach Bill Shuey could also get some consideration for the job, but it would likely take Jauron accepting an offer elsewhere for him not to be the Eagles' defensive coordinator in 2011.

Under Jauron the Eagles will run a defense much closer to what Johnson ran. Jauron likes to play an attacking, hard-nosed defense that will really help a guy like Trent Cole. Cole will not be asked to play as much coverage as he was under McDermott and will instead be allowed to go after the quarterback on nearly every play.

That attacking style should also help the secondary bounce back from a tough season. Dimitri Patterson is likely not the answer as the starting right corner, but could be a perfect backup for a guy like Nnamdi Asomugha.

Hey, my dream of seeing McDermott fired has happened, so why not?

The next step for McDermott will obviously be finding a new job. What he needs is a couple years to learn under a guy like Rod Marinelli or Bill Belichick. Both guys will do their fair share of blitzing, but for the most part they like to sit back in the zone and confuse opposing quarterbacks that way.

That's clearly McDermott's style and learning as a position coach under one of those guys for a few years could actually turn him into a decent coordinator.

Until then, this was the right move for the Eagles in the short-term and McDermott in the long run.
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Absent a turnaround, McDermott's days are numbered.


I've been saying for a few weeks now that it's time for Sean McDermott's tenure as defensive coordinator to come to an end, and now it looks like others are not only starting to hop on the bandwagon but believing McDermott could really be on the way out.

"There is no question (that McDermott could be fired)," said ESPN's Sal Paolantonio to Mike Missanelli on 97.5 The Fanatic. "It may be time for; I don't know how much input Dick Jauron has in the defensive game plan, I'm sure he has quite a bit, but eventually they may have to make a switch there."

The defense has been a huge liability in the fourth quarter all year long, but it hadn't noticeably hurt them until the meltdown against the Tennessee Titans in Week 7.

The Detroit Lions and San Francisco 49ers specifically were about an extra five minutes away from making miraculous fourth-quarter comebacks on the arms of Shaun Hill and Alex Smith, respectively. The Titans were able to do it on the arm (and hobbled hand) of Kerry Collins, who is the definition of an underachiever.

McDermott's play-calling also allowed Kenny Britt to rack up 225 receiving yards and three touchdowns in only three quarters. Statistically, it's the worst showing by an Eagles defense against one player in the franchise's entire 77-year history.

And as Paolantonio points out, it was largely due to McDermott's inability to adjust.

"It comes down to the defensive coordinator," Paolantonio said. "He has some kind of brainlock or whatever it is -- lack of judgment, inability to make adjustments on the fly. The head coach was covering for him this week [in a press conference], you heard that."

I'm not exactly sure what Paolantonio is referring to since Andy Reid says basically the same thing at every press conference, but this is what Reid had to say following the loss:

"I thought Sean had a heck of a game plan, man. Doggone, that's a good football team right there," Reid told the media. "For three quarters, we had it right there. It's not all about the offense, and it's not all about the defense. Everybody has an opportunity, and we've got to make sure that we secure that up a little bit and finish things off and we're going to be okay."

Outside of maybe going to bat for him a bit too eagerly, I don't see much there. But reading what Reid is actually saying is about as difficult as learning Mandarin so you be the judge.

But either way, McDermott's play-calling has now cost the team a win it should have had. And if he's allowed to keep running the defense, it's going to keep happening.

There is talk that Jauron could step in and replace McDermott, but Reid isn't someone who is likely to fire a coordinator mid-season. The bye week would be the perfect time to make a switch, but since it hasn't happened yet I don't expect it to happen at all.

The offseason is a different story, but we'll have to deal with McDermott for the rest of this season at the very least. I do believe Reid will be giddy at the idea of getting his buddy Jauron to run the defense for next season, however.

Reid could make a friendly suggestion to McDermott that he allow Jauron to get more involved in the day-to-day operations of the defense, but that's probably as radical as Reid will get for this season.

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Could Dick Jauron be the missing piece to this defense?


If you watched the Eagles' game this past week, I know for a fact that you were looking for the nearest wall in which to bash your head. I can honestly say that for the first time in my nineteen years of existence, I was legitimately angry at the Philadelphia Eagles.

Remotes, telephones, and pillows were flying in my house with every Kenny Britt reception. I could not fathom how a team, who seemed to have the game in their control, was absolutely dominated by one player and eventually lost the game.

Sean McDermott did a horrible job of making adjustments and managing his defense. You know, there is a guy in the booth named Dick Jauron who wears a cool cowboy hat and is a pretty good defensive coach. Why not give him a crack at it? I'll get to that later.

I counted three goats in this game: Ellis Hobbs, Sean McDermott, and Nate Allen.



Ellis Hobbs

After being matched up against Kenny Britt in the second quarter, Hobbs looked like a freshman on his first day of high school. He was absolutely lost and was being juked while Britt was running his routes.

The amount of separation between Hobbs (or any defender for that matter) and Kenny Britt was wide enough to fit about three Boeing 747s. When Britt got passed him, Hobbs seemed to just shrug it off in the hopes that Nate Allen would pick him up.

Yes, this may be a valid thing to do maybe for three plays. However, if you are a cornerback and are getting consistently smoked by a wideout, maybe it's time for a change. Swallow your pride and speak up. Tell the coach, "Hey, this guy is getting me every time. We should think about doubling him."



Sean McDermott

Aside from being a pretty cool guy, McDermott doesn't know his linebackers from his safeties.

Let me ask you this, how is it that the Eagles defense cannot seem to find a balance in defnding both the pass and run? After having running back Chris Johnson virtually shut down the entire game, the Titans realized that they would have to win through the air.

Instead of tightening up coverage, McDermott left his defense the way it was in the hopes that all will be well by 0:00 in the fourth quarter.

Wrong.

Adjustments are the key to locking up football games. McDermott has got to do a better job of tying up loose ends. Putting Ellis Hobbs on a team's best wide receiver is foolish. Asante Samuel is the best cornerback so why not put him on Britt? Yes, I know that it may screw up the game plan but obviously the original plan isn't working.

Simply put: the Eagles are scared to improvise on the fly.



Nate Allen

I don't have many bad things to say about Nate. He has played up to expectations throughout this entire season. However, in yesterday's game, he seemed to be lost a little bit.

I felt as though the responsibility of him covering Hobbs' lack of skill was getting to his head and making him think too much. Therefore, Allen gave up a couple of big plays. This is expected from a rookie, though.

Dick Jauron was brought on this season to coach the secondary. Jauron has had a few head coaching stints as well as a couple of defensive coordinator positions throughout the years.
From 1995-98, Jauron was stationed in Jacksonville under head coach Tom Coughlin. In those three years, Jauron had a fair amount of success and was able to have his defense rank about 15th each year.

From 2004-05, Jauron was defensive coordinator in Detroit under Steve Mariucci. As you all know, that Lions team was horrible. Anywho, Jauron's defense was ranked 18th and 20th in 2004 and 2005, respectively. In Detroit, Jauron's best defensive players were R.W. McQuarters, Shaun Rogers, Dre' Bly, and Kalimba Edwards.

To be able to have your defense rank in the teens with these players is pretty good, you have to admit. It a lot better than having your D rated in the mid-to-high twenties under McDermott.

Imagine Dick Jauron operating a defense with Trent Cole, Stewart Bradley, Asante Samuel, Nate Allen, Ernie Sims, Quintin Mikell, etc. The possibilities are endless.

I know Andy Reid and Co. are not too keen on demoting assistants but "doggone it," the guy (McDermott) has to go. Even if it means switching him to coach the secondary.
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How much blame does Sean McDermott truly deserve?


Akeem Jordan is definitely not the most talented linebacker in the league, or even the most talented on the Philadelphia Eagles' roster, but he has been the most consistent for Sean McDermott and his defense.

Stewart Bradley is constantly caught in the wash and taken out of the play and Ernie Sims gets bullied whenever a blocker can engage him. Jordan won't be seen making any spectacular plays, but he is capable attacking the play and forcing it back inside for Bradley to get his stats.

Or, as has been the case more recently, for the defensive tackles and Bradley to get completely washed down and watch the running back gouge the defense right up in the middle.

Sure, Jordan gets caught in the wash and bullied as well from time to time, but more often than not he's doing what he needs to be doing, ableit unspectacularly.

But it seems as though Eagles defensive coordinator Sean McDermott would rather point to Jordan as the scapegoat and sit him on the bench in favor of Moise Fokou rather than correcting the things he's doing wrong as the man calling the shots.

Instead of recognizing that he needs to blitz more often when the situation calls for it and, when he does blitz, make sure the call is not completely predictable, he's going to reverse a decision he made in Training Camp to bench Fokou in favor of Jordan.

If he didn't think Fokou could get the job done back in camp, what makes him think he can get the job done now?

It could be that he doesn't, and is just looking for a way to divert the attention away from him and his deficiencies as a coordinator. Or, he could be completely oblivious to the fact that there's not an offensive coordinator or quarterback in the league that can't tell you exactly where his blitz is coming from and make sure they go the opposite direction.

Andy Reid has never been great drafting linebackers (see: Barry Gardener, Matt McCoy, Quinton Caver, Joe Mays, David Bergeron, Andy Studebaker, Tyreo Harrison and Chris Gocong), but the three starters the team has right now is good enough to get the job done.

It's McDermott's job to make the best of what he's got, and it feels like he's not only making the best of what he's been given, but he's holding back the unit as a whole with his predictable blitzes and uninspired schemes.

If this defense doesn't pick it up very soon not only will the team continue to lose games, but McDermott could be on the hot seat. There's a guy very capable of taking over as the defensive coordinator currently coaching the secondary in Dick Jauron.

I believe Jauron was brought in just in case the season started to go this way, and Reid likely wouldn't have to think too long before hiring his buddy to run the defense.
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Jauron could be running the defense in a few years.


Back in 2003, Andy Reid brought in his old friend Marty Mornhinweg after he was fired as the head coach of the Detroit Lions. Since Brad Childress was already named the offensive coordinator, Mornhinweg was given the title of "Senior Assistant."

Mornhinweg floated around the Eagles' coaching staff until after the 2005 season when Childress was hired by the Minnesota Vikings to be their head coach. Mornhinweg immediately was hired as the offensive coordinator and has retained that post ever since.

And now with another young coordinator aspiring to one day become a head coach in Sean McDermott, Reid has once again brought in and old friend from his days in Green Bay and hired former Buffalo Bills head coach Dick Jauron to be the team's secondary coach.

The drop from head coach to secondary coach might seem like a huge fall, but something tells me behind the scenes Jauron was told he'd eventually take over as defensive coordinator.

Hiring young coordinators, regardless of their level of success, has become the trend in the NFL today, and with all the turnover we see at head coach it's likely McDermott could get his shot sooner rather than later.

So, if and when that day comes, Reid is going to be ready. Rather than going through interviews and the whole process of trying to find a new defensive coordinator, he'll simply promote Jauron and move on from there.

He did the same thing with Childress and Mornhinweg, so having a plan in place for when McDermott moves on makes sense.

Reid is anticipating that McDermott will create a buzz around the league and someone will take a shot on him. Even after only one season, his time with the Eagles and as a defensive coordinator could be coming to an end.

Childress was only the offensive coordinator for three years, and Jon Harbaugh was only a defensive coach for one season before being snagged by the Ravens.

Harbaugh was the special teams coordinator for nine seasons, but very rarely are special teams coordinators hired as head coaches. The move to secondary coach made him appealing to other teams immediately, and the Ravens jumped on him (after being turned down by their first choice, Jason Garrett).

Even Steve Spagnuolo, who will mostly be remembered as the Giants' defensive coordinator, was only a positional coach for three years before moving on and eventually becoming the St. Louis Rams head coach.

The pattern is clear: Reid's understudies don't stick around for the very long -- Jim Johnson is the only exception to that, but that was by his own choice and certainly not a lack of interest -- so he has a plan in place by bringing Jauron on board.

It's possible Jauron gets an offer from another team and isn't willing to wait for McDermott to vacate the spot, but the possibility is only slight given his recent shortcomings in Buffalo. Usually, coaches don't receive a real offer for a couple years after failing so miserably.

Jauron belongs as a defensive coordinator and, in the next few years or so, he'll take over that post for the Eagles.
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Will Jauron be enough for the secondary to rebound?


Last year, for the first time in a long time, the Eagles' pass defense was in the bottom half of the league. Granted, not by much (at 17th), but it's troubling nonetheless.

As was the case with the rest of the defense, injuries took a toll on the guys in the secondary. Even Sheldon Brown, who has never missed a game, came very close to missing time with a few different injuries at one time, including a pulled hamstring.

Asante Samuel had an awful stinger at one point, Ellis Hobbs was forced to miss the latter portion of the season due to a neck injury, and Joselio Hanson was indisposed due to a four-week suspension for testing positive for a banned substance -- more specifically, a banned diuretic.

Quintin Demps hurt himself during the offseason, opening the door for Macho Harris who was very unimpressive at his new position. Sean Jones also got his shot, but after several unspectacular weeks he was allowed to walk in the offseason and is now in Tampa Bay.

Quintin Mikell was a bit nicked up, but most of his issues came from attempting to play two positions at one time; Trying to make up for the short-comings of the guy next to him significantly hurt his play.

And through all that, the only addition to the secondary was former cornerback/free safety for the Indianapolis Colts, Marlin Jackson. It's not a splash-maker like the Eagles have had in the past, but it's a solid signing of a guy who should be a serviceable starter.

But with no moves at cornerback and no big-name free safety, what exactly do the Eagles think will improve this unit that was so lack-luster in 2009?

Quite obviously, the guys will be more healthy. That should, of course, lead to better play. All of these guys have the talent, so that surely won't be the problem. Also, head coach Andy Reid and defensive coordinator Sean McDermott are looking heavily at improving the pass-rush, which should make the secondary look much better than in '09.

But the biggest thing, I believe, the Eagles are banking on is the addition of new secondary coach Dick Jauron. Jauron is replacing Brian Stewart who jumped ship to become the University of Houston's defensive coordinator.

Jauron was a successful secondary coach and defensive coordinator before a couple of failed stints as a head coach, so Reid is hoping that he is still able to effectively teach these veterans something they don't already know.

Jackson will be Jauron's biggest project as he hasn't played free safety in a couple seasons, but this is why he was brought in. Reid knew that a big-name safety was most likely out of the question, and brought Jauron in to help the transition as smooth as possible and put it all in his hands.

Hopefully said hands are able to work a castle out of a ball of clay.
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Jauron's presence should have an instant impact.


Andy Reid has found a replacement for Brian Stewart as the team's secondary coach in former Buffalo Bills head coach Dick Jauron. Jauron held that post once before with the Green Bay Packers from 1992-1994 under Mike Holmgren while Reid was the team's offensive line coach.

Jauron, while not a very good head coach, is a fantastic assistant coach and should be a great addition to an already solid Eagles coaching staff that Reid has assembled. He will be charged with the duty of helping to pick and mold a starting free safety.

Whether that's in the draft, free agency, or a player already on the roster, Jauron will most likely have a say in who becomes the Eagles' free safety in 2010 along with Reid and defensive coordinator Sean McDermott.

The Eagles pass defense ranked a lowly 17th last season and even though a lot of that is on a lack of pressure, part of it also lies in a slowing-down Sheldon Brown and Asante Samuel taking too many chances. Joselio Hanson will also have to work on his zone coverage, along with strong safety Quintin Mikell.

Jauron was fired halfway through the 2009 season by the Bills after a 3-6 start. He was replaced by Perry Fewell and now by Chan Gailey, who the Bills hired last month to be their head coach in 2010 and, hopefully for them, beyond.

Taking the job with the Eagles might be a calculated effort by Jauron to regain attention as a possible head-coaching candidate, but if and until that day happens he should be a great addition for the Eagles next season.
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