EAGLES SEND PEDERSON PACKING
Jeffrey Lurie spent nearly 42 minutes Monday evening explaining how he came to fire Doug Pederson, the only Eagles coach in franchise history to win a Super Bowl championship.
The upshot, in the team owner’s view: The Eagles are entering a retooling period (as they said they were a year ago, as well). Pederson’s vision, coming out of a bad year, was too tightly focused on 2021 and securing his own future. Pederson did not deserve to be fired, Lurie said, but the decision wasn’t about that, it was about “whether ... moving forward, our best option is to have a new coach.”
Lurie expects Pederson to continue to be a successful NFL coach, who might even get another job “later this week.” (With Joe Douglas and the Jets?)
Earlier Monday, 1,072 days after Lurie and Pederson embraced around the Lombardi Trophy under a blizzard of green, silver, and white confetti at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Lurie met with Pederson in Florida. It was their second meeting since the conclusion of a dreadful 4-11-1 2020 season. Lurie set up the session after a previous get-together, last week in Philadelphia, left him uneasy about the coach’s plan for getting the team back on track.
As owner, “you have to make tough, tough decisions,” said Lurie, who again will lead the head coach search committee. “After talking to Doug again today, it just felt that the path forward was best for us to part ways.”
Lurie said he thought the decision was “better for the organization and for Doug.”
Pederson was 42-37-1 in five seasons. He led the Eagles to two division titles and three playoff appearances.
Browns’ Stefanski off sofa
Nervously sitting in front of a TV while secluded in his basement at home, coach Kevin Stefanski watched his Browns’ shocking playoff win — the team’s first in 26 years — like one of the team’s many long-suffering, faithful fans.
From the sideline to the sofa.
His phone turned off, Stefanski, who was isolated from his team and family after contracting COVID-19 last week, felt helpless, torn as he paced.
“I don’t plan on doing that again,” he said.
Stefanski expects he won’t have to, and Cleveland won’t have to wait another generation between postseason appearances.
Given little chance without their coach, several key players and unable to prac
tice much last week, the Browns pulled off a stunning, 48-37 wild-card win at Pittsburgh that exorcised years of failure and painful frustration against their rivals.
“We have to keep it going,” said Stefanski, who anticipates returning to the team’s facility on Thursday.
Cowboys pick Quinn
The Dallas Cowboys agreed to terms on a threeyear contract with former Atlanta coach Dan Quinn as defensive coordinator, turning over a unit that was among the worst in franchise history to someone who built his reputation on defense in Seattle.
Quinn was already on the hot seat with the Falcons before an 0-5 start that included Atlanta becoming the first team in NFL history
to lose back-to-back games after leading by at least 15 points in the fourth quarter. One of those losses was to the Cowboys.
The 50-year-old Quinn replaces Mike Nolan, who lasted just one season as the most important hire for first-year coach Mike Mc
Carthy. Notable
Bears receiver Allen Robinson can’t say right now what his future holds or even what jersey he’ll be wearing when the 2021 NFL season begins next fall. “Right now, everything is pretty much on the table,” Robinson said in a Zoom call from Halas Hall.
The Falcons interviewed Titans offensive coordinator Arthur Smith and Tampa Bay defensive coordinator Todd Bowles for
their head coaching job. The Falcons said they held virtual interviews with both candidates on Monday. Smith also interviewed for the Jets’ head coaching vacancy on Monday as did Saints defensive backs coach Aaron Glenn.
• Pete Carroll will always believe in the style of play that has made the Seahawks one of the top franchises over the past decade. Run the ball a lot. Play great defense. Don’t commit turnovers. Take smart, calculated shots at big plays in the passing game. “We have to run the ball better, and not even better, we have to run it more,” Carroll said two days after being eliminated from the playoffs by the Rams. “We have to dictate what’s going on with the people that we’re playing and that’s one of the ways to do that.”