Eagles might have easy answers to fill coordinator vacancies

Days after their Super Bowl LVII defeat, the Eagles have lost both their coordinators. The potential replacements for those positions could be right under Philly’s nose.

There’s no compliment quite like stealing a coach from a successful franchise — it just generally doesn’t feel that way. The Philadelphia Eagles have seen both their coordinators, Shane Steichen and Jonathan Gannon, leave for head coaching jobs on the Indianapolis Colts and Arizona Cardinals respectively.

In their absence, the Eagles have a host of candidates available to interview for the open positions, but the most obvious answer could be starting them in the face.

To fill the offensive coordinator vacancy, ESPN’s Adam Schefter confirmed that quarterbacks coach Brian Johnson will be promoted in 2023.

Johnson has a long-standing relationship with Jalen Hurts’ family and was an oft-talked about candidate in other teams’ coaching searches, yet it makes plenty of sense as to why Philly would want to make an in-house move, promoting Johnson to the play-caller level and giving an opportunity for the Eagles’ young assistants to rise up the ranks as well.

Eagles are eyeing Brian Johnson, Vance Joseph for open coordinator roles

As for the defensive coordinator vacancy, why not just do a simple switcheroo with Cardinals’ Vance Joseph?

Jonathan Gannon was hired as Arizona’s next head coach in the franchise’s first big splash to rebuild the team following Kliff Kingsbury’s disappointing stint. Gannon now wields considerable power in choosing his coordinators in Arizona, and in the wake of this coaching shake-up, current defensive play-caller Vance Joseph could be released from his contract and free to sign with another team.

Joseph was an early candidate to take over as the Cardinals’ head coach after Kingsbury’s sacking but never secured a second interview with the team.

If Gannon decides he wants to handpick his own coordinators this offseason, Joseph could be an intriguing fit in Philly to take Gannon’s spot. It would be considered a lateral move for Joseph, yet the situation in Philadelphia looks a lot more promising than the one in Arizona, and Joseph may have overstayed his welcome on the Cardinals.

Hired back in 2019, Joseph’s defense in 2022 allowed 26.4 points per game, ranking above only the Chicago Bears; Joseph’s name nonetheless has been passed around in circles for the league’s remaining coaching vacancies.

There’s no rush for the Eagles to make a decision right now (and the team still has to comply with the league’s interview procedures), but Brian Johnson and Vance Joseph are two names to keep a close eye on in the coming weeks.