17 December 2023 , 23:15
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The Philadelphia Eagles have decided that senior defensive assistant Matt Patricia will be calling plays on the sideline instead of defensive coordinator Sean Desai from their Monday night game against the Seattle Seahawks.
Patricia, 49, joined the Eagles this spring after coaching the Detroit Lions from 2018 to 2020. Before and after his stint with the Lions, he spent 15 years as an assistant coach with the New England Patriots, winning the Super Bowl three times.
Patricia was part of two victories as the Patriots' defensive coordinator, including in 2016 when they led the league in fewest points allowed. He also spent last season as their offensive playcaller before joining the Eagles.
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Sean Desai joined the Eagles less than two months before Patricia, replacing Jonathan Gannon, who left for the Arizona Cardinals. Desai held the same position for a single season with the Chicago Bears in 2021 before spending last year as an associate head coach and defensive assistant for the Seahawks.
Now, reports suggest Desai will not be on the sideline in Seattle. Instead, he's moving to the coaching booth, where he called plays for the Bears two years ago, according to NFL Network. However, that move has not been officially made public by the Eagles, who have instead quietly made the call.
This change comes after the Eagles let in a historic number of points in their last three games. Their only previous time allowing 33-plus points in three consecutive games was in 1967.
Last season's Patriots offensive playcaller Matt Patricia will now be in the ear of the Eagles' green dot player going forwards (No credit)The defensive slump started at home against the Buffalo Bills, where they needed a last-minute 59-yard field goal to force overtime and eventually win 37-34. But their luck changed when the San Francisco 49ers thrashed them 42-19 in Philadelphia.
They suffered another heavy defeat last week, losing 33-13 to divisional rivals, the Dallas Cowboys. That leaves both teams with a 10-3 record for the season, taking the top two spots in the NFC East.
But their defensive struggles go back even further. Since Week 8, only the Washington Commanders have let in more than their average of 30 points per game, and no one has conceded more than the Eagles' average of 428.2 yards per game.
Despite these poor stats, Philadelphia coach Nick Sirianni publicly supported Desai at a news conference earlier this week. When asked if "any coaching responsibility changes" were being considered, he said "no".
He added: "I feel good with the people we have in this building," and "We're going to keep rolling and finding answers with the people we have". He also showed "total confidence" in the DC to sort out the defence, saying, "That's why we hired him for the job."
"I think really where (the problem) is, the yards pile up on you when you give up some third downs. Again, the problem is everywhere, right? We got to coach them better, put them in better spots, detail it out for them and execute better."]
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