Turn your head, and Coughlin? Eagles' surprise candidate

The Eagles have indeed asked for and received permission from the Giants to interview 69-year-old Tom Coughlin for their head coaching job, a league source confirmed.

If you follow the theory that teams tend to try to find the opposite of the guy they just fired, when looking for a new coach or manager, this makes sense. If you like the idea of having the Giants fans you know basically poop pavement stones for the next few days, it also makes sense.

Otherwise, maybe not.

It's interesting to see the disparity in reactions. In New York, where Coughlin is the fatherly figure who won two Super Bowls, who would have made the playoffs this year had general manager Jerry Reese done a better job of acquiring talent, there is angst. Would Coughlin really  just wad up all those flowery media farewells and set them aflame by moving to a division rival, barely 100 miles down the New Jersey Turnpike?

In Philadelphia, where fans know Coughlin as the red-faced dude who ran out on the field to berate his punter while DeSean Jackson high-stepped along the goalline, there is equal consternation. The Eagles, whatever their problems, have won 13 of their last 16 against Coughlin's Giants, including five of six during the Chip Kelly era. Why would the Birds want this old guy? He makes Andy Reid look like a clock management savant. Fans would have been much more excited about hotshot young Chicago offensive coordinator Adam Gase, who was hired Saturday to coach the Dolphins.

It might be relevant to all this that Coughlin's players in New York clearly loved him, and Jeffrey Lurie is looking to create that kind of bond here. It also might be relevant that the Eagles interviewed Giants offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo for their coaching job, and interviewing Coughlin on Monday could give them more insight into McAdoo.

It's hard not to think about Fred Shero, the Flyers coach who took the franchise to its only two Stanley Cups, in 1974 and '75. Shero resigned in 1978 and resurfaced as the New York Rangers' head coach and general manager in 1979. It was quite a while before Shero's legacy with the Flyers overcame that perceived betrayal, and Coughlin might have to weigh similar fallout.

Meanwhile, Kansas City offensive coordinator Doug Pederson, the guy a lot of people think the Eagles really want, interviews Sunday, after the Chiefs try to break an eight-game playoff losing streak Saturday against the Texans.

My take? Coughlin's teams put points on the board. He's a man of stature in the league, known for his integrity, intelligence and compassion. Whether he has enough left in the tank to take on rebuilding the Eagles is a big question. But I'd imagine players would be energized, even if fans wouldn't be. They talk to their peers; this would not be some shot-in-the-dark, can-he-be-a-head-coach situation.

One more thought: Whatever happened to that head start on the process the Eagles were getting by firing Chip Kelly a week early? More and more, it seems Lurie just couldn't wait to get the guy out of his organization.