The most talented teams need quality coaches to help them reach their ultimate goal of winning a championship, regardless of the sport. This is especially true in football, as coaches across the board on offense, defense, and special teams work together each weekend. While we are only four weeks into the 2025 season, one member of Philadelphia Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni's staff has already done enough to make a case for a pay raise moving forward.
After blocking a field goal attempt before running it back for a score to end Philadelphia's Week 3 win over the Los Angeles Rams, the Eagles similarly started their scoring against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday. Just over two minutes into the game, Philadelphia forced Tampa Bay to punt the football, and special teams coordinator Michael Clay's bunch came up clutch again by blocking the punt and taking it to the house (h/t @CameronWolfe) to put the Eagles up 7-0.
Eagles' Clay Forcing Philly to Give Him a Pay Raise With Early Season Play
It's getting to the point where Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni should start giving Clay a raise.
Sunday's performance marked the third block for Clay's special teams unit over a quarter and a half of game action. Simply put, that is unheard of production from a special teams unit and is turning the Eagles' special teams coordinator into a rising star in the NFL at just 34 years old. These are the types of coaches who are getting interviews for head coaching jobs in today's NFL, as every franchise wants to find the next bright, young mind to push their team over the top.
While special teams coordinators don't typically get these opportunities as often as their peers in offensive and defensive coordinator roles, it has happened before, and those coaches have enjoyed success in the NFL. One example of this is Baltimore Ravens coach John Harbaugh making the jump from special teams coordinator to head coach after spending nine seasons in the same role in Philadelphia that Clay currently holds.
A former linebacker for the Oregon Ducks, Clay began his coaching career with the Eagles in 2014 as a defensive quality control coach. The following year, he was promoted to assistant special teams coach before moving on to the San Francisco 49ers. In 2021, Clay returned to the City of Brotherly Love to take over as Philadelphia's special teams coordinator and has held down that job ever since.
Perhaps it's finally time to reward him for a job well done.
If Clay's special teams unit can keep this level of play up for the remainder of the season, there will be plenty of outside pressure that the Eagles must overcome if they want to keep the coordinator as part of Sirianni's coaching staff.
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