The odds of a team losing its coaches and coordinators to promotions in other organizations certainly increase when that team is undefeated. Right now the Eagles are 8-0, the offense and defense are both humming, and football's preeminent insider thinks a prominent name behind the Eagles' offensive success could be poached when the offseason arrives.
ESPN insider Adam Schefter said in his weekly appearance on 97.5 The Fanatic that he had a sit down interview with Eagles quarterbacks coach Brian Johnson for his podcast, and that he came away highly impressed with Johnson.
How impressed?
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Schefter thinks Johnson will be getting head coaching interviews as soon as this offseason:
"SCHEFTER: I had the honor of having [the Eagles'] quarterbacks coach, Brian Johnson, on my podcast yesterday talking about Jalen Hurts and the team. That guy's got such a good vibe to him. He may be a head coaching candidate this year. How about that?
"KINCADE: Wow, this year?
NFL
"SCHEFTER: This year. I'm not telling you he'll get a job, but I think he's going to get interviewed for a head coaching job this year."
Well dang, that'd be quite a leap!
Of course, Andy Reid famously made the leap from quarterbacks coach to head coach. So it's certainly not unprecedented.
This isn't the first time other teams have been interested in Johnson; last year, the Packers interviewed Johnson for their open offensive coordinator position.
And it certainly makes sense that teams around the league would see Johnson's success with Jalen Hurts and Hurts' development from Year 1 to Year 3 and say, 'Hey, I want that on my team!' Hurts obviously gets plenty of credit as well, but there's no doubt Johnson has been part of that leap.
Johnson, 35, started his coaching career as a quarterbacks coach at the University of Utah in 2010 and worked his way through numerous collegiate programs, including a stop at Howie Roseman's alma mater Florida as the Gators' offensive coordinator, before landing with Nick Sirianni's inaugural coaching staff as the team's quarterbacks coach last season. That means Johnson has worked with just one quarterback at the pro level in Hurts, which could be a ding for some teams or a gold star for others. It's all in the eye of the beholder. In any case, Hurts' jump from average-ish borderline starter to legitimate MVP candidate is encouraging.
Now if I were ranking the Eagles coaches most likely to become a head coach this offseason, I'd still rank Shane Steichen and Jonathan Gannon above Johnson. But it's certainly something to keep an eye on after the postseason comes to an end.