Nick Sirianni's Success Prompts Deep Dive Into Previous Coaches in Eagles History

Where does the current Eagles coach stack up to some previous coaches after two seasons in charge? Longtime writer Gordon Glantz takes a good look

Nick Sirianni made a strong case for being the NFL’s Coach of the Year.

His Eagles team improved by five wins from last year to reach 14, which is the most for one season in franchise history and they are the No. 1 seed.

Also, two of their three losses came with a backup quarterback.

One of my readers, and a former sportswriter and managing editor, Gordon Glantz, offered to take a deep dive into how coaches fared in Eagles history to see where Sirianni stacks up.

The following is Glantz’s research and writing:

GROUP A

The most successful/fondly remembered coaches in franchise history share one common bond, that being a slow start that may not have even been tolerated in this era of impatience.

Consider:

GREASY NEALE

He went 4-17-1 in his first two seasons (1941, 42) and finished the decade with three straight appearances (1947-49) in the championship game, winning the last two. He was 6-6 in 1950, his final season.

BUCK SHAW

He was 2-9-1 in his first season, 1958, before going 7-5 in 1959 and becoming the only coach to beat Vince Lombardi in a championship game in 1960 (10-2 in the regular season).

DICK VERMEIL

He was 9-19 in his first two seasons (1976 and 77) and was far from the beloved guy he is now, as boos rained down like snowballs from the 700 levels at the Vet, mostly over his ultra-conservative play calling.

While there wasn’t much talk radio to speak of (1210 AM had a semi-regular show with Steve Fredericks and a guy named Ira Mellman who would report live from games), there were several daily newspapers with classic columnists questioning if Leonard Tose made a mistake hiring a young college coach (even though Vermeil had been in the NFL in the late 60s with George Allen’s Rams as the first-ever full-time special teams coach).

Dick Vermeil gets carried off the field by Claude Humphrey (left) and Charlie Johnson / USA Today

In 1978, on the strength of the Miracle of the Meadowlands, the Eagles finished 9-7 in the NFL’s first 16-game season. It was also the first year of an extra wildcard team (five instead of four). Vermeil still faced criticism after a 14-13 loss in Atlanta when they blew a 13-0 lead in the fourth quarter while in a soft prevent defense.

He also went with punter Mike Michel as the placekicker, and Michel missed a PAT kick in the game and two field goals, including one as time expired. However, it was the first of four straight playoff appearances, the zenith of which was the 1980 NFC title win over hated Dallas before falling, 27-10, to Oakland in Super Bowl 15.

In the strike-shortened 1982 season, the Eagles went 3-6 and Vermeil stepped away, citing burnout.

BUDDY RYAN

He entered the picture following several middling seasons under Marion Campbell (Vermeil’s defensive coordinator) and declared the team “had a winner in town.” 

Not quite.

In his first year, 1986, the Eagles were 5-10-1. The following year, with a strike, they were 7-8 (but a promising 7-5 in games without replacement players).

While some thought it noble that he refused to coach the replacement players, just one win would have placed them in an expanded playoff format. The following three years, the Eagles made the playoffs under Ryan but lost in the first round, the last two at home.

Ryan used to pompously note that you win games in December, not September.

The team’s September record in the three playoff years was 4-8. One more September win in each of those years would have meant a first-round bye. 

ANDY REID

He was 5-11 in his first year (1999) before a major turnaround the following year at 11-5, which marked the first of 7 playoff appearances –including a trip to the Super Bowl – through 2010.

All told, they reached five NFC title games, going 1-4.

DOUG PEDERSON 

He was 7-9 in his first season (2016) and we all know what happened in 2017. The Eagles made the playoffs the following two years before the bottom fell out in 2020.

The statue immortalizing Doug Pederson and Nick Foles after the Eagles Super Bowl LII triumph sits outside Lincoln Financial Field :: Ed Kracz/SI Fan Nation Eagles Today

GROUP B

They should have a drug to cure premature adulation, as we have seen plenty of it in Philly with the Eagles.

Consider the coaches who were the talk of the town and reviled by the end of their tenures (even more than the coaches who came and went with no success at all):

JIM TRIMBLE

He took over in 1952 (after a disastrous season under Wayne Millner) and the Eagles were second to the Cleveland Browns for three straight years (1952-54). They were 7-5 in 1952 and 7-4-1 the next two seasons. There were high hopes in 1955, but the Eagles were 4-7-1 and Trimble was out the door as a footnote in team history.

NICK SKORICH

He was promoted to head coach in 1961 (after the job was reportedly promised to Norm Van Brocklin and then rescinded). With Sonny Jurgensen posting numbers that rivaled Nick Foles’ '27-2' season of 2013, throwing 32 touchdown passes and for 3,723 yards, the Eagles were 10-4 in their title defense season of 1961.

Only a late-season 28-24 loss to the New York Giants cost a return trip to the title game. The next two years, with uneven play from Jurgensen, the Eagles were a combined 5-20-3, and Skorich was gone.

JOE KUHARICH

He came in next and the Eagles were a slightly more competitive 11-17 the next two seasons before going 9-5 in 1966 (earning a trip to the bygone Runner-Bowl, a clash between second-place teams, as was also the case under Skorich in 1961). 

The Eagles were 6-7-1 in 1967 but dropped to 2-12 in 1968, ending the Kuharich era.

ED KHAYAT

He replaced Jerry Williams in 1971, and the Eagles went 6-4-1 under his guidance after an 0-3 start. The following year, a 2-11-1 record was it for Khayat, though he got a little more leash out of sentimentality because he was a starter on the defensive line for the 1960 team.

MIKE MCCORMACK

He brought in a high-powered attack in 1973. Roman Gabriel was a Pro Bowler at quarterback, as Harold Carmichael had a breakout season and rookie tight end Charle Young excelled. 

After a 1-4-1 start, the Eagles finished 4-4. After a dismal 2-11-1 the previous, 5-8-1 seemed exciting. The next year, they were 7-7, with the infamous Mike Boryla winning the final three games. In 1975, after a 4-10 season, McCormack was replaced by Dick Vermeil.

RICH KOTITE

He is often considered the “worst coach ever” by an element of the fan base. Actually, not even close, but that’s another discussion for another time.

He was promoted by despised owner Norman Braman from offensive coordinator to replace the popular Ryan, which didn’t help.

In his first season, Randall Cunningham was injured for the season in the first quarter of the first game. Quality backup Jim McMahon was unable to stay healthy as well. Next came a QB carousel that included undrafted rookie Brad Goebel and Pat Ryan, a journeyman Kotite coaxed out of retirement. 

The team settled on veteran Jeff Kemp by the end of the season but a 10-6 record was not enough for the postseason. 

Rich Kotite / USA Today

The team was buoyed by a defense that was first in the league against both the run and pass, as they were more disciplined under coordinator Bud Carson than they ever were under Ryan. 

Had the team won one more game, history would have remembered Kotite differently. As it was, they were 10-6 the following year and won a playoff game in New Orleans before losing in Dallas. 

While Kotite detractors say he “won with Buddy’s players,” that’s not entirely true.

Cunningham, Reggie White, and safeties Andre Waters and Wes Hopkins were among the holdovers when Ryan arrived. The Eagles went 8-8 in 1993 and started 7-2 in 1994 before losing out to finish 7-9. New owner Jeffrey Lurie then fired Kotite, who was 36-28 in his four regular seasons.

RAY RHODES

He was Lurie’s first hire and also marked the first black head coach in team history. The move looked like a stroke of genius when the Eagles went 10-6 in his first year and blew out Barry Sanders and the Lions in the first round before falling in Dallas in the second. 

The next year, they again made the playoffs but lost in the first round to the 49ers. Rhodes’ Eagles fell to 6-9-1 in 1997 and the wheels came completely off in 1998 with a 3-13 finish that felt even worse.

CHIP KELLY

He first said no to leaving the college ranks after building a kingdom at Oregon, but reversed course in 2013 and promptly led the Eagles into the playoffs with a 10-6 record. 

The team was the talk of the town, as Foles replaced an injured Michael Vick early in the season and played out of his mind, throwing 7 touchdowns in one game. 

The Eagles made the playoffs but fell, 26-24 when future Eagle Darren Sproles had a long kick return after the Eagles went ahead and it set up the winning field goal. 

The Eagles went 10-6 the next year but faltered enough down the stretch that Dallas snatched the division and a playoff berth away. Kelly then insisted on being GM and coach in 2014, but the team went 7-9. He was fired with one game to go.

And now to the current coach:

NICK SIRIANNI

His story is still being written.

Sirianni is trending toward Group A  after starting off his first season 3-6.

In this era where patience is not a virtue, with talk radio and the internet, it seemed like the lynch mob might run him out of town with all the vitriol, but the Eagles went 6-2 the rest of the way (with the last loss a glorified preseason game) and made the playoffs.

Already 23-11 in the regular season, Group B seems out of reach, but a few playoff wins would help keep him out of that group.

As it is, I vote for Group A as he comes across as Vermeil without the burnout, but no one has a crystal ball.

Gordon Glantz is an award-winning career journalist, having spent 25 years (1988-2013) in the newspaper business. He was a sports writer for 13 years (1988-2001), a crime reporter for two (2001-2003), and then the managing editor for 10 (2003-2013). He is now a freelance writer for several publications and websites. Follow his blog at ingordonville.com.