Philadelphia Eagles: Hey Jacksonville, Doug Pederson is a great hire

Welp, after signing Nick Foles all the way back in 2019, the Jacksonville Jaguars are returning to the Philadelphia Eagles‘ 2017 season once more for a chance to replicate their success in the only other area of the country where you can get a meatball hoagie at Wawa.

That’s right, in the wee hours of the night, at least for normal folks, ESPN Senior NFL Insider Adam Schefter broke the news that Shad Khan and the Jacksonville Jaguars had come to terms with Doug Pederson to become their next head coach, taking over for Urban Meyer after a disastrous campaign in 2021.

Is this hiring particularly flashy? Oddly enough, fans in Jacksonville don’t seem to think so, but hey, if you think back to 2016, folks in Philly weren’t exactly over the moon about hiring Andy Reid‘s former offensive coordinator either. How did that one work out?

No, as Jaguars fans will soon learn, Doug Pederson is a unique breed, but a coach who turned a Philadelphia Eagles team stuck in a descending rut under Chip Kelly into Super Bowl champions, a feat not even Andy Reid could accomplish over a much longer period of time.

Ex-Philadelphia Eagles head coach Doug Pederson is a great fit in Jax.

What is Doug Pederson’s calling card?

Is it his offensive scheme? I wouldn’t say so. I mean, he did incorporate the RPO earlier than most and rode that play all the way to the Super Bowl with Nick Foles under center, but his offense looked different from season to season depending on who else was filling out his coaching staff.

How about his ability to connect with and lead men? I mean, the biggest reason Dougie P isn’t coaching the Eagles right now is because of his failed relationships with both Carson Wentz and Howie Roseman, so I wouldn’t say that is his strongest suit either.

No, if there’s one feather in Pederson’s cap, it’s his experience playing and coaching the quarterback position.

From his time at La-Monroe to his decade-plus run in both the NFL and NFL Europe as a player, and then his eight years on the sidelines mostly under Reid first in Philly and then in Kansas City, Pederson has forgotten more about playing quarterback than most will ever learn and has proven himself an incredibly valuable resource for young signal-callers at the start of their NFL careers.

Unlike Urban Meyer, who had other things on his mind than to put Trevor Lawrence in the best position to succeed, Pederson is surely already watching old game film of Clemson to see what his new quarterback likes to do and formulating a basic gameplan that he will fill out further once he assembles an assistant coaching staff. He’ll add plays that work, remove ones that don’t, and while his offense won’t look as aesthetically attractive as that of, say, Sean McVay, it’ll be more than functional and produce above-average on-field results.

Considering the Jaguars have had exactly one playoff appearance in the last 14 years, I would certainly consider signing one of the only eight active head coaches with a Super Bowl ring a slam dunk, especially since he knows a thing or two about developing a young, highly touted quarterback.

In a way, Jacksonville is sort of like Philadelphia South. It doesn’t get a ton of respect on the national level, has a bunch of Wawas, and is the home of one of the most significant wrestling promotions of all time. And now, or should I say once it becomes official, they will be only the second team in NFL history to name Doug Pederson their head coach, a move that will link them to the Philadelphia Eagles for the foreseeable future. Considering the two teams are set to face off this season, this could be the start of a beautiful interconference rivalry.