Why did the Eagles fire Doug Pederson?
Earlier today, Philadelphia Eagles Head Coach Doug Pederson was relieved of his duties by the team. This comes just 3 years after Pederson and the Eagles had a fantastic run to the Super Bowl, which ended in a 41-33 victory over the defending champion New England Patriots.
It was Philadelphia's first Super Bowl victory and many praised Pederson's ability to quickly turn the team into a contender behind franchise QB Carson Wentz. So, how did it all fall apart so fast and was it Pederson's fault?
Let's take a deeper dive into the firing of now one of the hottest Head Coaching candidates in the league.
Doug Pederson or Carson Wentz? Who's at fault?
Wentz was Doug Pederson and Eagles GM Howie Roseman's "guy" and thus, a lot rode on him.
On their run to the Super Bowl, Wentz was an MVP candidate until his season ended in Week 15 and Nick Foles took over.
The rest from there is history, but the year after, Wentz returned as a starter in Week 3 and once again lead the team to the playoffs. But, not before being injured again and not getting to play as the Eagles were eliminated in the Division Round by the New Orleans Saints.
The Eagles won the NFC East again in 2019 but were bounced from the playoffs in the first round by the Seattle Seahawks, this time with Carson Wentz actually starting a playoff game.
Things came to a crashing halt after the disaster that was the 2020 season. The Eagles finished 4-11-1 with Wentz starting the first 12 games, in which they went 3-8-1.
In Week 14, 2nd round pick QB Jalen Hurts took over for Wentz and led the Eagles to a 24-21 win over the New Orleans Saints, but lost the next three games as a starter.
So, Carson Wentz finished the year as the backup QB, and had 2,620 yards along with 16 passing touchdowns and 15 interceptions alongside an underwhelming passer rating of 72.8.
Doug Pederson was unable to win with either of his QBs, but it was clear the future, to him, was brighter with Hurts at the helm. Wentz, who was considering requesting a trade from Philadelphia, made the Eagles' options clear. It was either him or Pederson.
Thus, Doug Pederson was fired, with the Eagles making it clear they want to give Wentz one more shot. But that doesn't necessarily mean Doug Pederson is at fault. He wanted to move on quickly after a disastrous season, but perhaps that was unfair to Wentz.
It's also worth mentioning that as the Eagles Head Coach, Doug Pederson went 42-37-1 and 4-2 in the playoffs.
The answer to this question is still unclear, as we'll have to see how the Eagles and Wentz perform without their Super Bowl-winning Head Coach.
What's next for Doug Pederson?
It's not everyday a Super Bowl-winning Head Coach is available and Doug Pederson instantly becomes an attractive hire for one of the many teams looking to add a new Head Coach this offseason.
The Atlanta Falcons, Houston Texans, Detroit Lions, Jacksonville Jaguars, Los Angeles Chargers, and New York Jets are all still conducting interviews for their Head Coach openings. It'll be a top priority for all six teams to get Pederson an interview to truly see if he is still a capable Head Coach or if he may have to find a reduced role elsewhere.
Perhaps a team like the Chargers or Falcons could utilize Pederson the most, as they already have established rosters and good draft capital. However, Doug Pederson's future will be determined in the coming weeks and we will simply have to wait and see.