The week of the biggest game of your entire lives, the most unwelcome thing that can come into a locker room is a distraction.
The Philadelphia Eagles got an unwanted but not unexpected distraction ahead of their Super Bowl matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs on February 9 when first-year offensive coordinator Kellen Moore became the favorite to become the next head coach of the New Orleans Saints, according to a report by ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler on February 1.
The Saints won’t be allowed to contact Moore again until after the Super Bowl, which is convenient because the game is in New Orleans this year.
“The #Saints plan to meet again with #Eagles OC Kellen Moore after Super Bowl LIX, an indication he’s the top choice for new head coach, per The Insiders,” NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport wrote on his official X account on January 31. “This is the first time the two sides can speak… and Moore could just stick around, since the game is in New Orleans.”
Eagles Can’t Afford Distractions Right Now
Even though Moore and the Saints can’t talk until after the Super Bowl, the question has to be raised as to if Moore’s mind might be elsewhere as he tries to formulate a game plan to beat the Chiefs. This is also familiar territory for the Eagles, who are in the Super Bowl against the Chiefs for the second time in 3 seasons.
Philadelphia lost both of its offensive coordinators following the 2022 season with offensive coordinator Shane Steichen leaving to become the head coach of the Indianapolis Colts and defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon leaving to become the head coach of the Arizona Cardinals.
The Chiefs won that Super Bowl, 38-35, and following the loss a lot of the blame fell on Gannon’s shoulders after the Eagles’ defense gave up 17 points in the fourth quarter.
Afterward, the Cardinals self-reported a tampering violation that resulted in the teams exchanging third round picks in the 2023 NFL draft, with the Eagles moving up from the No. 94 overall pick to the No. 66 overall pick. The Cardinals also received the Eagles’ fifth round pick in the 2024 NFL draft.
The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Marcus Hayes reported the Eagles were “furious” with Gannon after discovering that he’d been communicating with the Cardinals in violation of NFL rules.
“Arizona Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort made an impermissible call to Gannon in the lead-up to the Super Bowl — a call that eventually led to tampering charges,” ESPN’s Tim McManus and Josh Weinfluss wrote in December 2023. “Gannon did not tell the Eagles about it or his intention to interview with Arizona, according to a league source, a lack of transparency that disappointed the Eagles in large part because it hurt their chance to retain preferred replacement Vic Fangio.”
The Eagles eventually hired Fangio as defensive coordinator one year later and he’s been the driving force behind the NFL’s No. 1 defense.
On the flip side, Steichen and Gannon have been pretty awful as head coaches so far. Through 2 seasons, Steichen is 17-17 and Gannon is 12-22 and neither team has made the playoffs.
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