WIP host worries bad fans are hurting Eagles’ OC search, but national reporter says there’s more to it

It has been nine days since the Eagles removed first-year offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo. Since then, some of the team’s prime candidates have fallen off the board.

The Athletic’s Dianna Russini first reported that former Giants head coach Brian Daboll, who the Eagles interviewed on Tuesday, is focused on the Bills’ head coaching job. If Daboll does not land in Buffalo, where he served as Josh Allen’s offensive coordinator from 2018 to 2022, he is “expected” to take over as the offensive coordinator for the Tennessee Titans, per Russini.

Former Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel, another one of the Eagles’ prospective candidates, is now expected to be hired as the Los Angeles Chargers offensive coordinator, per ESPN. Meanwhile, former Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski, a Philadelphia-area native and Penn graduate, has been hired to take over head coaching responsibilities for the Atlanta Falcons.

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The Eagles have recently requested to interview 29-year-old Chicago Bears offensive coordinator Declan Doyle, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Doyle joins former Chiefs offensive coordinator and Bears head coach Matt Nagy, who the Eagles interviewed on Wednesday, as a prospective candidate. Additionally, former Commanders offensive coordinator and Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury is still available.

With some fans growing impatient over the Eagles search and candidates falling off the board every day, local and national media members have been looking to answer: Is the job as valuable as Eagles fans believe? Why have the Eagles not hired a candidate yet? What type of coordinator should they bring in?

In late November, following the Eagles’ 24-15 loss to the Chicago Bears, Patullo’s South Jersey home was vandalized.

A video of vandals throwing eggs at Patullo’s home went viral on social media, sparking an investigation by the Moorestown Police Department. At the time, Patullo explained that he knew that “part of [his] job is to handle criticism,” but the egging of his home “obviously cross[ed] a line.”

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Now, 94 WIP host Joe DeCamara is wondering if the that has turned likely candidates away from the Eagles job.

“Every coordinator in football knows it. Every one. And you know who also knows it? The wives of the candidates,” DeCamara said. “Because when the wives talk to the candidates, the men who are their husbands, it’s ‘OK we’ve got seven openings, maybe there’s four we’re interested in, honey let’s put together pros and cons, let’s put the ledger on a piece of paper.’

“There’s pros here. Three guys in the last three years have gotten a head coaching job here. Two on offense, one on defense. There’s a lot of success here. A lot on the pro side of the ledger. But don’t kid yourself. Those kids that egged the house, that is a [expletive] setback in hiring a coordinator. The wives know the last guy’s house got egged. That’s tough, man. That’s tough for the dude who’s going to be OC, tough for the wife.”

Russini argued on WIP earlier this week that the Eagles’ job may come with too many “hard decisions,” leading to candidates not ranking it first among their available options.

“I don’t [think the Eagles offensive coordinator job is an attractive job]. I think coordinators that are on this list are aware that navigating Philly is difficult because of the way it’s set up right now — who’s on the team and really what it’s going to look like in the next few months,” Russini said.

“I think this offseason, of any team right now in the NFL, I think this Eagles group has to probably do the biggest revamp of figuring out what they are. … What is going to come with it are some hard decisions and figuring out who wants to be there and maybe perhaps who they need to bring in.”

The Eagles have 10 free agents on offense, including tight end Dallas Goedert, wide receiver Jahan Dotson, and tackle Fred Johnson. Additionally, there has been a lot of dialogue around whether the Eagles will bring back star wideout A.J. Brown, who has made his frustration well known throughout the season.

Eagles past and present are also weighing in on the team’s coordinator vacancy.

On The Rich Eisen Show, former Eagles defensive end and Super Bowl LII champion Chris Long urged his former squad to hire a “cheat code” at offensive coordinator.

“You need to hire a cheat code offensive coordinator. We talk about this thing a lot — bring somebody out of retirement, or find somebody who’s aged out,” said Long. “Find yourself a [former Saints and Raiders coach] Dennis Allen, because you have one on defense and his name’s Vic Fangio. He’s not getting a head coaching job. He doesn’t want one.”

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Long went on to explain that the Eagles should hire a coordinator who will not leave for a head coaching vacancy to assist Hurts’ further development. Famously, Hurts has had nine offensive coordinators in 10 years, a trend dating to his time at Alabama.

Meanwhile Eagles legend Brandon Graham, who came out of retirement to play for the team this past season, seems to agree.

“I feel like you got to have someone that’s experienced,” Graham said on his podcast. “I like what someone said about a Vic Fangio [on offense] … You really do have to have that command. Because if A.J. [Brown], and all the guys that [were], you know, disgruntled last year, we got to get everybody believing it. …

“I think a veteran person, or someone that got respect in the league will just have everybody kind of [have a] change in belief and get a re-energized feeling.”