INDIANAPOLIS — If you thought Nick Sirianni was taking a complete hands-off approach to the Eagles' offense in 2024…
Think again.
When we last heard from the Eagles' head coach at his year-end press conference in Philadelphia, he talked about hiring a new offensive coordinator who “will be in charge” of the Eagles' offense, though Sirianni admitted that wasn't the case. Pretty sure what it will look like. At that time, we did not yet know that the new offensive coordinator would be Kellen Moore.
But at the NFL Combine on Tuesday afternoon, Sirianni talked about “intertwining” offensive systems to create the Eagles' offense in 2024.
“[Moore] “It was very successful, and we had a lot of success,” Sirianni said. “And I think I'm really looking forward to combining what he's done well with the things we've done really well. I think it's going to be a really good game, and Kellen's record speaks for itself.”
While the Eagles undertook an almost complete overhaul of the defense's coaching staff to surround veteran defensive coordinator Vic Fangio with his staff, the changes on offense were much less noticeable.
Moore, 35, was able to bring Doug Nussmeier with him from Los Angeles. Nussmeier is the Eagles' new quarterbacks coach and worked under Moore with the Chargers and Cowboys.
But apart from that? The Eagles continued passing game coordinator Kevin Pattullo, offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland, running backs coach Jamal Singleton, tight ends coach Jason Michael and wide receivers coach Aaron Moorhead.
“Obviously we know these are really good coaches,” Sirianni said. “I have great confidence in them.
“It's merging two systems, to grow in both systems so we can put the best product on the field. That's why this has kind of stayed the same because we're going to be doing a lot of different things — we're going to be doing different things, but we're also going to be doing things that we've been successful at as well. Obviously, these guys The ones I just mentioned up front have had success here and are looking to grow from that.
There is no doubt that the Eagles have had success offensively under Sirianni at times. They had the No. 3 overall offense in the NFL in 2022 in scoring and yards. They were an elite group.
But in 2023, the Eagles weren't nearly as good. While their defense has completely collapsed under Sean Desai and Matt Patricia, the Eagles' offense has gone in the wrong direction as well. They were still a top 10 unit but the top 10 wasn't good enough and even Sirianni admitted after the season that they needed new ideas.
The plan is for those new ideas to come from Moore. But how successful are the Eagles at mixing two offenses together? Because in January, Sirianni talked about the next OC who will bring a running scheme for the Eagles but it's clear that there will be a mix of offensive schemes, philosophy and maybe even play designs.
And we won't really know how well it all blends together until we see it on the field.
It's very hard to hear all this talk about a new coach bringing new ideas to the offense without thinking about the 2020 season when Rich Scangarello was traded for Doug Pederson in Pederson's final season at the helm of Philly. That year, Scangarello was hired as a senior offensive assistant and the thoughts were that he would bring some concepts from Kyle Shanahan's offense to the Eagles.
Instead, those ideas mixed like oil and water, and Scangarello ended up unable to realize any of his ideas. Pederson still maintains control of the offense. Heck, if you're going to fail, you might as well fail on your own terms. In the end, the Eagles posted a 4-11-1 record and Jeff Lurie eventually cleaned house.
This is fear. It is difficult to avoid this fear creeping into your mind.
But there are also some other reasons for optimism as well. One is that Moore is not just an additional coach. He's the offensive coordinator for the Eagles and that means a real powerhouse because he'll be playing, too. He brings his quarterback coach with him. This appears to introduce a system of checks and balances to crime that did not exist in 2020.
But in the end, this is still Sirianni's team. He is still the head coach and it will be up to him to figure out a way to successfully integrate those systems into a unique offense for the Eagles. That's the goal anyway.
“Obviously I hired Kellen because I felt like he was the best person for the job, and Kellen has been successful everywhere he's been,” Sirianni said. “I know this is a really relative career, but he was successful as a player. He was successful as a coach.
“I like the way he thinks about football and the way he approaches everything and is able to make decisions based on that. So, it's been fun getting to know him. Obviously I've always respected him from afar, and it's been fun getting to know him and working on this Things coming together to build our attack for next season.
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