The NFC East could see a major shakeup at the top if the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys lose at their respective Wild Card matchups. Cowboys owner Jerry Jones placed Mike McCarthy on the hot seat before their game against the Green Bay Packers.
The Eagles have had an epic collapse since December. They limped into the playoffs, losing five of their final six games of the season. Rumors have circulated that the Eagles could fire head coach Nick Sirianni if the Eagles have a quick exit in the playoffs.
Firing Sirianni seems premature. He led the Eagles to the Super Bowl last year. However, the Eagles are known for showing conditional love to players and coaches. They’ve fired Andy Reid and Doug Pederson in situations other teams would have kept them on.
The Philadelphia Eagles could make a coaching change
Mike Florio with NBC Sports wrote Saturday that the Eagles publicly deny any possibility they’d fire Sirianni next week if Philadelphia loses to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Monday night. However, Florio reported there is an “undercurrent” of sentiment that the Eagles would make a coaching change to hire someone like Bill Belichick:
“An unmistakable undercurrent remains that a change isn’t out of the question, if things continue to go poorly against the Bucs. The key could be the availability of Bill Belichick…
It could be that the Eagles don’t want Sirianni to freak out in advance of Monday night’s game. It could be that they wouldn’t make a change unless they were 100 percent certain they’d get Belichick.
What about Nick Saban?
Florio seems to think Belichick is the perfect fit for the Eagles. He also thinks Belichick is Jones’ preferred choice in Dallas. There’s one problem in that world: Belichick can’t coach the Eagles and Cowboys.
Nick Saban stunned the college football world Wednesday when he resigned from his position as head coach at Alabama. Rumors are floating around Saban retired because he didn’t like the way the college football was changing, especially in regards to NIL making it harder to recruit and win at Alabama.
In an ESPN interview with Chris Low, Saban denied changes in college football made him retire. Saban cited his age and the time demands of college football as the reason he stepped away:
Saban, 72, said his age made it increasingly more difficult for him to do the job the way he demanded of himself that it should be done. He told ESPN last month that 14-hour days were a lot harder to navigate at 72 than they were at 62 and reiterated that on Thursday.
Changes in recruiting didn’t help Saban with long days at Alabama. But he wouldn’t have to spend as much time on the road recruiting if he were back in the NFL.
The Eagles would be a perfect fit for the aging coach, as their team has one of the most talented rosters in the NFL. He’d be reunited with quarterback Jalen Hurts and wide receiver DeVonta Smith. The defense is full of Georgia players he is familiar with.
For a coach who cares about his legacy, winning a Super Bowl in the NFL would be the best way for Saban to put a stamp on his career. The situation in Philadelphia would be much different than the rebuild he had to endure with the Dolphins.
Another difference: neither side would worry about a short-term stint at the head coaching position.
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