NFL Rumors: Eagles risky DC hire, Jim Harbaugh's second chance, Rudolph return in doubt

NFL Rumors: Eagles considering risky DC hire

The Philadelphia Eagles suffered a brutal collapse, going from being 10-1 and Super Bowl favorites to an 11-6 team that lost out on a NFC East title and lost in the Wild Card Round in Tampa Bay. While head coach Nick Siriani appears to be safe for now, the Eagles did fire defensive coordinator Sean Desai after just one season with the team.

Desai was stripped of play-calling duties midseason with their defense struggling, but the defense under new playcaller Matt Patricia was arguably worse. The Buccaneers could do whatever they wanted against that Eagles defense in their playoff win over Philadelphia.

With Patricia likely gone too, the Eagles are searching for a new defensive coordinator. ESPN's Jeremy Fowler is reporting that a big name is getting consideration for that role, as former Washington Commanders head coach Ron Rivera is interviewing for the job.

Rivera has six seasons of experience as a defensive coordinator, and when last seen at the position, his Chargers led the league in total defense. The problem is, that occurred in 2010, 14 years ago. Since then, Rivers has spent each of the last 13 seasons as a head coach, including the last four in Washington.

The Commanders made the playoffs in Rivera's first season as their head coach and that was thanks in large part to their defense, but Washington missed the playoffs in each of the following three seasons with their defense taking a monstrous step back in 2023. Washington ranked last in both points against and yards against this past season.

Rivera's resume as a coordinator is quite impressive, but again, he hasn't been a coordinator for over a decade. He'd likely be an upgrade over Desai and Patricia, but that's not saying much. It can work out well, especially with Rivera being experienced in the NFC East, but there would be an element of risk considering how long it has been.