It would have made a lot of sense for the Eagles to hire John DeFilippo to fill their vacant offensive coordinator position.
That isn’t happening.
According to ESPN, the former Eagles’ quarterbacks coach who helped Carson Wentz have a near-MVP season in 2017 is heading to Chicago to work with Mitchell Trubisky.
Thursday will mark a week since the Eagles fired offensive coordinator Mike Groh and receivers coach Carson Walch. Since then, there has been notable silence from the NovaCare Complex about a possible replacement for Groh. Reuben Frank theorized about that silence earlier today.
A couple days ago, DeFilippo and the Jaguars “mutually agreed to part ways” and it seemed like this was lining up perfectly. Sure, Flip didn’t last long at either of his two offensive coordinator jobs after leaving the Eagles, but this was the guy who had a huge role in Wentz’s career early on.
The fact that Flip so quickly accepted a position as a quarterbacks coach could perhaps mean that a reunion in Philly was never really on the table.
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During the 2018 season, after DeFilippo was let go by the Vikings, Doug Pederson declined to bring him back. Perhaps that was just because it was the middle of the season or maybe there’s more there.
But the Eagles once thought a lot of DeFilippo, so much so that they blocked him from interviewing with the Jets for their offensive coordinator position after the 2016 season. That was reportedly a decision made by owner Jeffrey Lurie.
It is important to note that Pederson said on WIP last week that while ownership and the front office want to be involved in hiring the new offensive coordinator, ultimately, it’s his decision.
Whoever gets hired by Pederson will be the third offensive coordinator since Pederson took over in 2016. Frank Reich, now the head coach in Indianapolis, had the role for two seasons and then Groh had it for two seasons.
With a head coach who also calls the offensive plays, the role of offensive coordinator is difficult to define. That OC position becomes a sounding board and a source of ideas for the head coach and also helps implement game plans and coach positions when needed. The lack of play-calling duties in Philly could be a deterrent for top-tier candidates, but the biggest sell for the Eagles is Reich, who parlayed that position into a head coaching gig.
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