Eagles Hiring Bill Belichick Rumor: The 'Fastball' vs. The 'Short-Term'
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As it was happening, we reported in this space that Philadelphia Eagles higher-ups did indeed this offseason contemplate firing Nick Sirianni in favor of deposed New England Patriots czar Bill Belichick.
And what was owner Jeffrey Lurie's view of benefits and the pitfalls?
The upside, according to an ESPN report: "Despite some owners and executives believing the game had passed Belichick by, the Eagles felt he still had his fastball.''
The downside: Lurie and his lieutenants worried that the fact that the legendary Belichick is 15 victories away from being the NFL's all-time wins leader might actually be a negative.
How so?
"There's also a belief that Belichick will coach only until he gets 15 more wins, enough to pass Don Shula as the winningest coach in NFL history,'' ESPN writes. "(Lurie) wondered to a confidant: Was it worth overhauling the building, changing personnel and philosophies on everything from training staff to salary cap structure, for someone who might coach only two years?"
Sirianni has of course felt the heat of expectations in Philadelphia, as the Eagles were a Super Bowl team two years ago and were 10-1 last year before they stumbled down the stretch.
Philadelphia ultimately ended up retaining Sirianni, and not only did the Eagles deciding against a pursuit of Belichick - the rest of the NFL did the same.
Going forward? The legendary head coach (and his lieutenants) want it known that he wishes to return to coaching in 2025 ... and that two of the teams on his radar are the Eagles and the Dallas Cowboys.
That means the two bitter NFC East rivals might be spending the year evaluating their own "benefits and pitfalls'' as the season progresses.
