Eagles Fire Defensive Coordinator Sean McDermott
Coaching Staff, Eagles, News Saturday, January 15th, 2011
Philly.com has just reported that Eagles defensive coordinator Sean McDermott has been fired. This an amazing report if indeed it is true. Of course we’ve all heard a great deal of criticism for McDermott after the Eagles defense had one of the worst red zone percentages in three decades.
McDermott took over as a defensive coordinator two years ago when his mentor and former Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Johnson died of cancer.
The defense was 12th in the league in yardage allowed but they were 21st in points allowed. Reid was asked about McDermott’s standing right after their season was ended by the Packers and the head coach said McDermott was going to return.
“You’re dealing with a guy that’s a tremendous worker and is a very smart individual,” Reid said. “And so I look at it a little bit different than what you do in that I’ve seen him work with young guys, I’ve seen him work through injuries, I’ve seen him stay positive through those situations and still put us in a position to win football games.”
Something obviously has changed in Reid’s thinking. I wonder what was happening in the discussion regarding whether the problem with the defense was the scheme or the talent.
I did learn that they weren’t happy in the front office with McDermott making the coverages so complicated that some of the younger players weren’t able to play. Cornerback Trevard Lindley was one of the young players who was kept off the field because of McDermott’s complicated schemes.
I also had heard that they didn’t like the way McDermott would have some of their best pass rushers dropping into coverage. This was not looked upon fondly. Pro Bowl Trent Cole voiced some displeasure with the way he was being used.
I think this firing says that Andy Reid doesn’t have the power in the organization that he’s had in the past.
What do you think about his firing?
Short URL: http://gcobb.com/?p=14754
Posted by GarryCobb
on Jan 15 2011. Filed under Coaching Staff, Eagles, News.
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they ran the ball 4 straight times early……run lst down run, 2and 1 , run FIRST DOWN, run 2 and 5 short pass before u knew it they were across the 50. that is more right there in 5 plays than ANDY REID shows his whole game. period whether Packers established the run or not i am too stupid to understand that but i do understand what these simple running plays did. Time ran off the clock. for 4 minutes Packers OL felt in control, running back(6 rounder) was getiing 9 yards a carry. not sure if Packers established the run but beginning of thie Packer drive showed what the run can do. Falcons were helpless. remeber this 4 straight running plays and a short pass in a playoff game and the team is cruising. that drive is alot better than a quick score which u can accomplish later in the game when the guys think u might run and not expect the pass from our lovely coach who should be fired
Stevo – Sure hope you’re right!
They all voted in a meeting. Andy voted for keeping McDermott and Howie and Joe Banner voted for getting rid of him, so that’s what they did. It’s Andy’s job to come out and publicly explain why.
that’s why u don’t go by pass run ratio just how many times u run yeah they might have the same tonight but packers ran main rb 20 times falcons ran lol 10
tdym…there is absolutely no way anyone can promote the idea that a team who began the game with 11 passes and 5 runs (followed by drives of 8p4r and 7p) did any “establishing” of a run game.
you guys hate the Eagles 3-1 ratio…and GB began the game 3-1……that’s odd.
Just face it Rodgers is a quantum leap above Vick in terms of Qbing skillz. (and yes, Ryan ahead of Vick on teh curve too)
Amazing how GB let Rodgers struggle for an entire season…go through a difficult 2nd season (50 sacks) to see a quality QB develop, whilst many of you are willing to dismiss “baby arm” after 7 starts in favour of a flashy, yet inevitably ineffective, Vick who has 7 years of mediocre play on his resume.
Good times.
That’s asanine.
Night mim. Peace to you and yours. God bless.
I can understand them being dissatisfied with McDermott but I sure hope they think all the people on their list will do a better job. I also hope, like Stevo, that they’ll have the lattitude to change the defensive philosophy. I’d love to see them bring in some big bodies along that D line!
The debating was fun guys. Kirk out…
i don’t care what the ratio is as long as u run the 25 times
i am with u about Vick, Jackson was wide open on that last play and a great qb would not miss that. that said Vick is a good qb and i will support him cause we need OLs,LBs
GCobb, what would happen next year if Vick decides to audible for 10 runs every game. I truly believe if Joe Montana was qb ,having the will to win,he would do that.
G is that true?? Sweet.
Good info G,
Coach AR is officially on the Hot Seat,
He has been losing authority a little bit more each off-season over the last couple of years.
I believe he may have to get a playoff win next year to secure his job.
The Choice for a new DC will be very telling I believe..
How active is GM Roseman going to be active in the Search and Interviewing Process.. Let’s say they hire a DC from the Outside, and this new DC comes in and starts replacing DL Segrest, LB SHuey (Which I wouldn’t mind one bit), but you know Coach AR would not like this and the painting would be definitely be on the wall to him that it’s win or your done.. but like most Coaches, If you get let go, you would like to have gone down with your own staff and your own people that you put in place..
Say for example the Eagles go out and Hire Rob Ryan to be DC, who is loud,brash like his Brother and Father were, but he’s not a Coach AR type of guy or personality. I could see a lot of Tension in that Locker room develop if Coach AR is forced by Banner/Roseman to bring someone in if he didn’t have much imput about it..So watch for who is hired and that new Coach’s background and this will be another clear example of who is really running the show at NovaCare.. (it’s Joe Banner)
This should be interesting and the fact that they haven’t named D Jauron as the New DC already tells me that he probably isn’t the choice and that it may be someone from the outside coming in..
(And maybe a DC that GM Roseman is forcing on Coach AR)
Maybe AR is already done
I am sure you have all know of the expression “you can’t shine shit”…its really hard to tell about Sean,he really didn’t have much to work with as far as defensive players go
McDermott is not at fault for us not running the ball, having O-LINE to run ball and protect, and have players to stop the run that’s good ole Andy . But he should have blitzed more. i remember Cowboys’ Leon Lett would drop into Coverage. i would like to know how many sacks Cole had against Packers cause he wasn’t in coverage every play
I really like this move. I feel there is some truths to McD putting the Eagles in situations to win the games even w/ all the injuries, but he still wasn’t utilizing his players to the best of their ability. To name a few: Babin and Clemons. It looks like Bunkley and Patterson have both taken a step backward under McD as well. Also when you look at our LB’s he can’t seem to decide whom to go with on that defense.
Jim Johnson was a master mind, He could figure out which player fit in where and how etc.. McD might be just as intelligent when it comes to play developing and ideas on the defensive side, but he has to much trouble figuring out where to best use a player.
The Eagles need to pick up a D coach that will say, Go get that kid in the draft, I could really use him for this position etc…
Well I vote to fire Andy Reid. This just shows this FO has no clue what it is doing. This means Reid is staying also. Get ready for Deja Vu all over again in 2011.
Was Andy coaching the Falcons last Night?
Falcons ran Turner 10 times and only sent three after Rodgers. Falcons should know Eagles had success against Rodgers last week when they sent 5 or more guys. Rodgers had a 40% rating with 5 or more BLITZ
Did u know: Packers ran the ball 29 times this week and last week. Falcons ran Turner 10 times, Eagles ran McCoy 12. Rodgers was 31-36 86% last night Michael Vick was 20-36 55% last week(that one is for Vinnie)
I taped Howie,Bradshaw,J Johnson,Ditka,Keyshawn,Chris,Faulk, taped em all and watched after the Packers and Falcons game. Howie said “Falcons have to run Turner on 1st down” Faulk did a whole segment on key for Packers to win game they have to stop Turner. M Irving said key was Falcons coming off bye have to establish the run. J Johnson said Falcons have “1 pass rusher” Packer more than that.Michael Strahan said ” has a D guy i know the Defense has to number #1 stop the run..that is most important” ……When most of these guys who have played the game say keys of the game is to run turner or stop turner. Packers did not have to stop him his own coach did that. Johnson knows u had to run against the Packers pass rush for any chance……Turner was averaging 4 yds a carry it would have kept Rodgers off the field no costly stupid sacks or interceptions
Anytime you are setting records in futility, somebody has to pay the price. The Birds were playing so poorly in the red zone that no defense had allowed touchdowns at that pace in three decades. That’s the best argument the Eagles could make for getting rid of him.
Remember how poorly the Secondary played in 2009 too when I think they gave up 27 or 29 TD
passes followed up by 32 allowed this year. The lack of a good DL and Secondary has put this Eagle team down in the Rankings anyway you look at it.. They are realistically about the 5th-6th-7th Best team in the NFC and more likely the 12-14th Overall in the entire NFL when you look at the entire squad moving forward talent wise
Lst night’s game was complete dominance by the Packers..
Ryans pitiful throw and decision just before the half was the nail in the coffin,
But bottom line, the Falcons had no pass rush and their Secondary was soft and played back which
Rodgers and Co just carved them up and down the field …
The Falcons Defense actaully made the Eagles defense look good in comparison..
I have not been around, don’t have time for postgame hysterics, but I’d like to comment on the complaint that the Eagles don’t run the ball enough. They can’t. The personnel they have is not good enough to make the running game worthwhile. I will try to make an analogy to illustrate my point. If you have 3 eggs, some butter and water, you can make an omelet. You cannot make a dry aged prime ribeye. You do not have the ingredients you need. Any way you diagram it, no matter how good your culinary skills, you are having eggs, not steak. The Eagles do not have the Oline to run the football. Maybe a little on the left side, but certainly not on the right. The center play was adequate, nothing more. Adequate means sometimes he might get the job done, sometimes not, and those are not good enough odds in the NFL. Running the ball and failing is throwing away possessions, and failing to take advantage of what the team actually does well. They have fast receivers who can stretch the field, so they did what they do well and hoped it would be enough to win. There was no other choice. The Eagles did not drive the ball down the field converting 3rd downs and stringing together long drives at any point this season. The gobbled up chunks of yardage doing what the team is currently built to do. Redskins game #2? Bombs away. Last 8 minutes of Giants game #2? Big plays downs the field. They only succeeded running the football when they could go 4 wides, spread the field and run into an open defense, and teams began to take that away. So that left them with a quick strike deep passing game, because it was the only thing that gave them a chance. Running the ball frequently would have left them in the same 3rd and long situations they were often in anyway. The personnel on the Oline is a different and how they ended up in that situation is a different article.
Now, lets address the Oline. To sum up the issues, and failures, we need only exhibit the Andrews’ brothers. The Eagles had bet heavily, prior to the 2009 season, that the brothers were the right side of the line for years to come. Remember all the talk about the Eagles having the most dominant Oline in the NFL? I think it even made a headline somewhere to that affect. When that adventure rolled a 7, there was neither the time nor the resources available to implement a long term fix. Justice is a decent 2nd team rt. MJG is a fringe player in the NFL for a variety of reasons. Nick Cole is a short term substitute player, all of whom ended up having to play extensively, and failing. The team makeup at that time (2009) was such that the skill positions were set, The Oline had supposedly been fixed, and the defense required a huge upgrade, culminating in the 13 players drafted on that side of the ball. You suggest signing FA’s to upgrade the line? There weren’t any free agaents last year, CBA issues, nobody made it to the open market. The D players were so bad, they had no choice but to draft heavy on that side of the ball. Drafting an Olineman who couldn’t play at all was not going to help. The only option on the Oline was to hope to survive the 2010 season, get Kolb blooded, and try to fix the right side of the line this offseason, and be a good team in 2011. Then Vick exploded and we got the season we just had, based on Vick, Djax and hope. When Andy had a good Oline, (Tra, Welbourn, the blind guy, and Runyan) they Eagles ran frequently. Remember the 3 headed monster? Good rb’s, no wr’s, and Chad Lewis, with a young #5, that was the O. When #5 blew his ACL and Garcia replaced him, what did the O do to compensate? Run the ball and throw slants. Did it pretty well too. When the players the Eagles had expected to have did not materialize in the last 2 years, any hope for a balanced offense went out the window. The running game was not going to set up the pass, because the Oline could not make the blocks they needed to make to hurt anybody with the run, defenses played pass all the way, safe in the knowledge that the Eagles had no other way to beat them, as opposed to they would simply not run the ball. The run game did not matter, doomed to failure before the start. Ruuning the ball was going to do nothing more than waste plays and opportunities to get the ball downfield to 10 and 18. Scream until your face turns blue. Lead a mob to Lincoln Financial Fields carrying torches and pitchforks, try to burn down the battleworks. Its not the playcalling. Its not the scheme. NFL coaches rarely get fooled, and not more than twice. Its about the players, what they can and cannot do. The Eagles did not have the players to have a marginally useful running game, let alone a solid dangerous run game, and they will not until the Oline is fixed. Its just the reality of the situation, running the ball would have been a waste of time and plays this year. Thanks for your time, sorry for the rant.
To AS
I remember the headlines and all the talk and hype in Summer 2009 about the best O/Line in the NFL with the Andrew Brothers.. I also remember all the headlines & hype this past Summer about the Eagles “Young Guns” about how the Eagles WR’s were going to tear up the NFL..
I also recall getting hammered many times when I questioned the hype and thought that the Andrew Sisters would never amount too much for they basically didn’t have the heart to play anymore (on top of their Injuries), just like I thought and still think the Eagles Young Guns is a lot of hype and the fact is that they are no where near the close to the best WR corps in the NFL.. They are good, but not as good as they think they are for some who disappear in the Red/Zone, Some are poor blockers, and some only can run the Deep Routes but not do much else…
The crap starts from the Eagles and the over-zealous,naiive Eagles fans want to believe and buy into it and then local media/talk radio just perpetuate’s the hype,over-exageration, You could also include QB M VIck story in with this as well, though he was playing at a phenomenal level in Oct/Nov and was the story of the NFL in mid-season, but he and the team really peaked in that Redskin blowout and opponents caught up to him and the predictable Eagle offense and he only played so-so over the last 5-6-7 games if you ask most NFL Observors while the team played poorly down the stretch
In a nutshell, this is simply an average team, their talent is middle of the road, the “preparation and the process” by Coach AR is good, but the execution and game day adjustments are average at best..It is what it is and for many Fans to say we coulda,woulda,shoulda been Super Bowl Bound is just wishful thinking.. This 2010 Eagles team playing any of the top 8 teams in the DIvisional rounds would not offer much competition against them (outside of Seattle)
This team is just average all the way around with an explosive QB (Vick) and a dangerous deep threat in WR (D-Jax) and 1 playmaker on defense in CB Samuel and a usually very reliable Kicker in Akers.. The Remainder of the squad has a few good players sprinkled in (Peters,Maclin, McCoy,
maybe T Cole on Defense) and that’s about it…
It’s shame and 2010 will be looked back as a opportunity squandered with the position that the Eagles were in and the rest of the NFC was in a month ago.. Who would have thought that a few inches of Snow and some wind would alter the course of the 2010 Eagles Football Season and
forever change the persona of the Linc and the City of Philadelphia as the “City of Wussies”
What a shame
This team had a 10-6 record, with 7-9 talent. I know everybody hates Andy. He’s fat. His kids got in trouble. He gets outcoached in big games. He does not yell at players on the field (how did that work out for Singletary? His team quit and laughed at him when he got canned). The situation the Eagles are in now is due to misses in the draft and FA, and that happens to everybody. The way I see it, the Birds are 4 or 5 PLAYERS from being very good and a SB contender (which they never were this season). This coach provides stability, a proven track record of teams playing hard for him, even when things go badly, and a system that gets 10 wins a year, more often than not. There is only 1 Belicheat, he’s just better. Andy is as good as Lovie Smith for certain, Carroll, Smith in Atl, etc Its about the players, not the coaches. We were blind stinking lucky to get as far as we did this season, that is a simple fact.
SEGREST FIRED!!!
Eagles can run the ball. Mccoy averaged 4 yds carry and Reid ran him 12 times.