EAGLE WON’T FLY
Jets can’t bring Pederson into this market after finale fiasco
Doug Pederson is a Super Bowl winning coach who will succeed at his next stop, but that doesn’t mean the Jets should hire him or that Pederson should want that job.
Pederson couldn’t be any less popular in the New York market after his Eagles tanked a Week 17 game to hand Washington the NFC East and eliminate the Giants.
He has a relationship with Jets GM Joe Douglas, but there are more factors to consider than just familiarity between the front office and head coach.
The Giants aren’t the Jets, but the lasting image of Pederson especially here in New York is of a coach who pulled his starting quarterback early in the fourth quarter of a close game, seemingly throwing any concern over the integrity of the game to the wind.
It is hard to believe that Pederson made a decision to throw a game on his own. That smelled like an organizational call with the head coach simply taking the public fall.
Giants coach Joe Judge spoke for many people when he ripped the Eagles’ tactics the next day, even as Judge said he did not blame Philly for the Giants’ inability to win more than six games.
“To disrespect the game by going out there and not competing for 60 minutes and doing everything you can to help those players win, we will never do that as long as I’m the head coach of the New York Giants,” Judge said.
Pederson, meanwhile, might also benefit more from coaching in a market that is less of a pressure-cooker than Philadelphia or New York.
Pederson grew increasingly confrontational and ornery with the local Philly media in the past year or two, and the New York market would provide no cover if Pederson’s Jets didn’t immediately show improvement, either.
For the Jets, at least interviewing Pederson makes sense, and obviously the opportunity to land a recent Super Bowl winning head coach is exciting.
But there is more to consider here than just the top of Pederson’s resume, and for the recently-fired Eagles coach, relocating himself and his family to North Jersey, where his name is synonymous in talk radio with possibly tanking a game, might not exactly make sense.
It’s not even a given Pederson will want to coach again right away next season.
A source close to Pederson told ESPN’a Sal Paolantonio that he is taking some time away from the game with his wife in Florida to discuss the future, including whether he wants to coach in 2021. He’s still owed two years at $6 million per year from the Eagles.
AROUND THE LEAGUE
Coordinator Don Martindale’s Ravens defense held Titans star running back Derrick Henry to 2.2 yards per carry (18 rushes, 40 yards) in Baltimore’s 20-13 Wild Card weekend playoff victory. Ravens QB Lamar Jackson’s 136 yards rushing, including a 48-yard TD run in the second quarter, paced the offense in Jackson’s first career playoff win. But Baltimore’s defense was the story of this game. The Titans hadn’t lost all season to any opponent that had scored fewer than 27 points. Until Sunday. … That Ravens-Titans game was the matchup of the two NFL teams with the biggest COVID-19
crises this season, by the way. The Titans saw the league’s first major coronavirus crackdown early in the season. The Ravens experienced the NFL’s biggest 2020 outbreak that pushed a Thanksgiving night game against the Steelers back to the following Wednesday. Due to the circumstances and the pressure and the stakes, Ravens coach John Harbaugh said of the win: “This may be the best win I’ve ever been associated with.” He said that despite having a Super Bowl to his name from 2012. … Cam Akers’ 142 yards from scrimmage in the first half of Saturday’s Rams victory over the Seahawks were the most in the first half for a player making his NFL playoff debut in the Super Bowl era (since 1966). Akers was a second-round pick (52nd overall) out of Florida State. … One of the plays of the season: Rams corner Darious Williams jumping a Seahawks wide receiver screen intended for DK Metcalf to intercept Russell Wilson and take it 42 yards to the house. … The NFL’s Nickelodeon telecast of the Saints’ 21-9 victory over the Bears was terrific, complete with SpongeBob SquarePants’ face in between the field goal uprights and a cartoon sliming in the end zone after each touchdown. Nate Burleson is a natural, superstar broadcaster who made the country’s biggest sport relatable and fun for the young viewers, and Saints coach Sean Payton following through on his promise to get slimed if New Orleans won, capped an entertaining and well-executed idea. Plus, it gave Bears QB Mitch Trubisky a way to win an award despite not scoring a touchdown until the game’s final play. Trubisky was named the game’s “NVP” due to fan voting. A nice consolation prize and Nickelodeon balloon trophy to place on the mantel this offseason to soften the blow when the Bears tell Trubisky they’re moving on … Giants offensive coordinator Jason Garrett interviewed for the Chargers’ head coaching vacancy on Friday … The Cowboys reportedly are zeroing in on former Falcons head coach Dan Quinn as their possible next defensive coordinator.