Is Doug Pederson actually considering giving up play calling?
On Tuesday, for the first time, Pederson left the door open to hand play calling off to someone else. But even in the wake of another offensive disaster, he said he doesn’t feel like he needs to at the moment.
Guess he's waiting till things get even worse.
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The Eagles fell to 3-7-1 Monday night with a not-really-that-close 23-17 loss to the Seahawks, their third straight loss and fourth straight game scoring 17 or fewer points on offense.
They netted four yards of offense on their first five drives, scored just one touchdown until a meaningless TD with 12 seconds left, had a 53-to-12 pass-run ratio, didn’t have a pass play of 20 yards by a wide receiver for the third straight week and ran the ball just twice after halftime.
They averaged a season-low 3.79 yards per play, and they’re averaging 4.89 yards per play this year, their lowest in 20 years. Only the Jets are worse this year.
The Eagles rank in the bottom five in every major offensive statistical category.
NFL
“I take pride in play calling and I look at everything,” Pederson said. “I’ve got to take everything into consideration and if I feel like I get stuck or in a rut I definitely would consider giving that up. It’s definitely on the table. I wouldn’t say it’s off the table. ... That’s part of sparking the offense and maybe seeing the offense through somebody else’s eyes.”
Pederson has called plays since he became head coach in 2016. The Eagles' only top-10 offensive ranking under Pederson came in 2017, when they were No. 7.
The main candidates to replace Pederson if he decides to let someone else call plays would probably be senior offensive assistant Rich Scangarello, who called plays as the Broncos’ offensive coordinator last year; senior offensive consultant Marty Mornhinweg, who has called plays for several teams, including the Eagles at times under Andy Reid; passing game coordinator Press Taylor; and assistant head coach and running backs coach Duce Staley.
But although Pederson did say he would consider it if he’s “in a rut,” it doesn’t sound like something he’s considering immediately, even though the Eagles rank 31st in the NFL in yards per play with five games to go.
“I don’t necessarily feel like I’m in a rut right now,” he said. “Things are still on the table and if I feel like I ever get to that spot, I’d consider for a game or a half or whatever letting somebody else do that if that helps us win.”
If this isn't a rut, I don't think any of us want to see what a rut looks like.
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