After letting go of Sean Desai and Matt Patricia planning to pursue other opportunities on Sunday night, the Philadelphia Eagles are in the process of rebuilding their defense, which took a significant step back this season.
Philadelphia hired Sean Desai as its new defensive coordinator to take over for Jonathan Gannon, who became the Arizona Cardinals' head coach.
However, Desai didn’t last long in the defensive coordinator role as the Eagles reportedly took him off third-down defense during the bye week, according to Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Eventually, the Eagles turned over the play-calling duties to senior defensive assistant Matt Patricia ahead of their Week 15 matchup against the Seattle Seahawks.
Things didn’t get better with Patricia playing the role of defensive coordinator. Instead, it got worse as Philly’s defense looked confused and gave up a ton of big plays. John Clark of NBC Sports Philadelphia reported Sunday that head coach Nick Sirianni could make a handful of coaching changes.
Matt Patricia is also moving on from the Eagles. He will be pursuing other opportunities. Nick Sirianni let go of Sean Desai. The Eagles are looking for a new defensive coordinator. My understanding is there could be a handful of coaching changes made by Nick Sirianni pic.twitter.com/o6glws6ctW
— John Clark (@JClarkNBCS) January 22, 2024
Eagles fans wondered what would happen to Sirianni’s job as the team lost six out of their last seven games to finish the 2023 season. However, it appears as if the Eagles’ front office brass will allow him to fix what ailed this team this season in hopes of getting back on track.
It wouldn’t be surprising to see the Eagles make some smaller coaching changes at linebacker and secondary as both units struggled immensely. As for the offense, Jeff McLane reported that offensive coordinator Brian Johnson could be the “next major domino to fall.”
However, McLane adds that Johnson is currently interviewing for head coaching opportunities, and the Eagles don’t want to hinder his chances.
Nick Sirianni did the firing, NFL sources said, another indication that the #Eagles HC will likely be returning.
— Jeff McLane (@Jeff_McLane) January 22, 2024
The Desai departure was obvious, as will be Patricia likely joining him. More changes will be coming to Sirianni’s staff.
OC Brian Johnson is currently interviewing… https://t.co/w245we5kOT
The Eagles’ offense also took a step back this season under the first-year offensive coordinator despite the team finishing within the top 10 in scoring and rushing yards. There have been reports about the quarterback being frustrated and players not knowing who's been calling the plays this season.
It’s been a season to forget for the Eagles, and the front office is giving Sirianni another chance to fix things as they don’t want to be in this spot again next season.
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