Philly lands their man
Only two days after his season ended with the Kansas City Chiefs when the team lost to the New England Patriots in the second round of the AFC playoffs, the Philadelphia Eagles pounce on offensive coordinator Doug Pederson for their head coaching vacancy.
The news of his hiring has been circulating since last week, as the Eagles have been actively pursuing him since the firing of Chip Kelly at the end of last year. The team could not officially hire him until the Chiefs were out of the playoffs.
Philadelphia owner Jeff Lurie had this to say about the hiring:
“We are excited to introduce Doug Pederson as our new head coach. Doug is a strategic thinker, a compelling leader and communicator, and someone who truly knows how to get the best out of his players. All of these factors were what initially attracted us to Doug and we believe that he is the right man to help us achieve our ultimate goal.”
Pederson served as an assistant in Philly from 2009-2012 under head coach Andy Reid and played one season as quarterback with the organization back in 1999.
The Eagles will introduce him in a press conference on Tuesday.
Eagles officially announced hiring of Chiefs offensive coordinator Doug Pederson as team’s new head coach.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 18, 2016