No, the Philadelphia Eagles special teams unit did not have a good 2020

One of the driving factors to the Philadelphia Eagles decision to part ways with Doug Pederson this offseason was due to his desire to bring back some familiar faces on the coaching staff. During his end-of-year meeting with owner Jeffrey Lurie, Pederson suggested that Press Taylor – who had an objectively bad year as quarterbacks in coach in 2020 – deserved a promotion to offensive coordinator. Lurie wanted something new and exciting, and promptly made the decision to send Pederson to the unemployment line.

With this still fresh in everyone’s minds, it came as quite the surprise when it was reported that the Eagles had blocked current special teams coordinator Dave Fipp from interviewing with the Detroit Lions. Considering how much emphasis was being put on bringing a new coaching staff to the table in 2021, it was borderline baffling to see the organization prioritize a guy whose unit really struggled this past season.

The Philadelphia Eagles special teams unit majorly underperformed in 2020.

And yes, the Eagles special teams unit did in fact struggle in 2020. Despite what the likes of Pro Football Focus may tell you, the Philadelphia Eagles special teams group was one of the worst in the entire league last season. They struggled in terms of converting extra points and field goals, they rarely generated splash plays via the return game, and their punt/kickoff coverage ability was barely above average.

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Nothing but respect to the guys over at PFF, but I genuinely have zero clue what film they watched to come to the conclusion that the Eagles special teams unit was the third best in the NFL.

My guess is that Howie Roseman and Lurie are going to attribute a lot of the groups struggles to injury, as key “special teamers” like Craig James and Rudy Ford missed most of 2020 due to injury. Jalen Reagor (who was supposed to be the team’s primary punt returner) also missed a good chunk of the year due to a thumb injury.

With that said, a lot of the unit’s mistakes came across as fairly inexcusable. Boston Scott and Greg Ward Jr. routinely misplayed punt and kickoff returns, and kicker Jake Elliott saw himself experience the worst season of his career by a freakin’ landslide. Considering Elliott’s absurd dead cap hit of $5.3 million next season, it’s a pretty rough spot to be in if you’re the Philadelphia Eagles.

The Eagles are set to inherent an entirely new coaching staff this offseason. They have to replace Jim Schwartz on the defensive side of the ball and Doug Pederson on the offensive side of the ball, along with filling a handful of assistant gigs. To me, it makes very little sense to prioritize keeping Dave Fipp of all people around for the foreseeable future. Sure, he was good in 2017, but so was literally every Eagles coach.

The Eagles blocking Fipp from interviewing with the Lions doesn’t automatically mean that he’ll return in 2021, the team’s new head coach could opt to replace him. However, it definitely improves the odds of Fipp hanging around for another year or two.

With that said (regardless of what PFF claims), the Eagles could definitely use a fresh set of eyes when it comes to special teams. Just like on the offensive and defensive side of the ball, the team’s third unit has seriously regressed as of late, and is in desperate need for a shot of life via an improved sense of innovative coaching.