In this Aug. 17, 2015 file photo, Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid, left, and offensive coordinator Doug Pederson, right, talk during NFL football training camp in St. Joseph, Mo. Reid mentioned it almost as an aside, but it was a fairly significant fact: He has ceded some of the playcalling duties to Pederson, and the result has been a more dynamic offense.
The Philadelphia Eagles fired Andy Reid three years ago.
So what better way to move on from Chip Kelly than to hire one of Reid's top assistants?
The Eagles will hire Doug Pederson, the Kansas City Chiefs' offensive coordinator, Philadelphia Daily News reporter Les Bowen first reported. Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer confirmed the report. The move can't be official until the Chiefs' season is over. It will be the first head coaching job for Pederson, the former NFL quarterback.
The Reid connection is the funny part of the story. Reid had a very good run with the Eagles, going 130-93-1 over 14 seasons. The Eagles felt the need for some reason to make a move after a losing season in 2012 (they seem to think that losing seasons must result in firing the coach). Reid has gone 31-17 with the Chiefs since the Eagles fired him.
Reid was lobbying Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie to hire Pederson, according to NJ.com. So, in essence, the Eagles fired Reid and then, three years of a Kelly experiment later, Reid helped hire his replacement. Perhaps the Eagles realized they had it pretty good with Reid, after all.
Pederson has a long history with Reid, dating back to when Pederson was a backup quarterback for the Green Bay Packers in the late 1990s and Reid was his position coach. Pederson's first NFL assistant coaching job, after playing in the NFL for 10 seasons (one of which, 1999, was with Philadelphia), was on Reid's Eagles staff in 2009. Pederson was on the Eagles' staff until 2013, when he went with Reid to Kansas City to be his offensive coordinator. Pederson has spent the past three seasons in that role.
The Chiefs aren't known to have a dynamic offense, though it has been effective, and Pederson is not a dynamic name as the Eagles' new head coach. His close connection to Reid will probably lead plenty of folks to ask why the Eagles didn't stick with Reid if eventually hiring Reid's offensive coordinator is how all of this played out.
But if Pederson can replicate some of Reid's success in Philadelphia, which included six division championships and one NFC championship, Philly fans should warm up to him quickly.
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