Philadelphia Eagles hire Nick Sirianni as head coach, sources say

PHILADELPHIA – The Eagles are hiring Indianapolis Colts offensive coordinator Nick Sirianni as their next head coach, sources told ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Thursday.

Sirianni, 39, had an in-depth interview for the head coach position which started on Tuesday and reportedly spilled over the next day.

There was a feeling in league circles that the race had narrowed down to two candidates – New England Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and Sirianni, who served as Colts coordinator for three seasons.

Philadelphia ended up hiring the least advertised name, but one that continued to gain traction within the Eagles organization as they called about it.

Sirianni had previously spent three seasons as an assistant with the Kansas City Chiefs and five seasons with the Chargers.

He was the Chargers quarterback coach in 2014 and 2015, when Frank Reich was offensive coordinator in San Diego. Reich hired him as his right-hand man when he left Philadelphia to take on the Colts head coach job in 2018.

Despite a rotating quarterback cast, Indianapolis has fielded a top-10 offense in two of the past three seasons. Philip Rivers has completed 68% of his passes this season for 4,169 yards with 24 touchdowns and 11 interceptions in 2020. Sirianni has worked as a quarterbacks and receivers coach since joining the league with the Chiefs in 2009.

The Colts (11-5) finished ninth in the NFL scoring (28.2 PPG) and 10th in yards per game (378.1) in 2020.

The Eagles conducted a thorough search after sacking Super Bowl-winning coach Doug Pederson on Jan.11. They interviewed Arthur Smith, Robert Saleh, Jerod Mayo, Joe Brady, Kellen Moore, Duce Staley, Todd Bowles, Dennis Allen, McDaniels and Sirianni. They had also asked to speak with Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Brian Daboll, according to sources, but there was an agreement to wait until after the AFC championship game on Sunday for a potential interview.

Pederson was fired after going 4-11-1 in his fifth season with the team. He went 46-39-1 and won the Lombardi Trophy in the 2017 season – the first of three straight playoff appearances for the Eagles under Pederson.