Jonathan Gannon’s defensive philosophy was heavily influenced by Vic Fangio, who is generally regarded as one of the best defensive minds of his time. It looks like the Eagles might be turning to another Fangio disciple to take over the Eagles defense after the Birds left Gannon in the desert after the Super Bowl. According to Ian Rapoport, Seattle Seahawks associated head coach Sean Desai is having a 2nd interview for the position today.
Some Eagles fans might not love the idea of anyone similar to Gannon taking over the defense after Gannon’s unit was confused by simple motion plays in the Super Bowl, but the basic principles of the defense that Gannon installed did lead to one of the best statistical defenses in the NFL this season. That didn’t help Gannon adjust or know when to blitz, but there is a lot of value to having continuity in philosophies if Desai is indeed the Eagles’ guy.
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Some of the candidates whose names were floated out last week would have required some large-scale roster changes. Wisconsin’s Jim Leonhard, for instance, runs a defense that utilizes a base 3-4. Given all of the possible losses along the defensive line, that might not have seen like a big deal, but it would have required investing more in the DL in free agency, most likely.
If the Eagles move forward with Desai, there will be less disruption for the Eagles’ defenders that aren’t free agents who are certain to return in 2023. And it appears as though Nick Sirianni prefers a defense predicated on limiting explosive plays as opposed to one that is ultra-aggressive. With the offensive firepower that the Eagles possess, it should be easy to understand why he prefers that, even if a large portion of the fanbase long for the days of all-out blitzes from Jim Johnson.
Desai was last a defensive coordinator in Chicago in 2021 under then head coach Matt Nagy. Desai replaced Chuch Pagano as the DC in Chicago following the 2020 season. Desai was not retained by the Bears when Nagy was fired following the 2021 season. He spent the 2022 season as the associate head coach and defensive assistant in Seattle, where he coached under Pete Carroll and defensive coordinator Clint Hurtt. Desai and Hurtt coach coached together under… Vic Fangio in Chicago earlier in their careers.
In Desai’s lone season as a DC, he did not blitz much more than the Eagles blitzed in 2022 under Gannon (ducks). He did, however, manage to get 18.5 sacks out of Robert Quinn in 2021, though. Remember that guy? He’s the guy Howie Roseman gave up a 4th round pick for to play 8 snaps in the Super Bowl and register 0 sacks.
Most fans will never get over Gannon’s awful performance in the Super Bowl – I am one of them. That said, the core principles of his defense weren’t bad and did result in a historic pass rush this season for the Eagles. If Desai can build off of that, this would be a great hire for the Eagles. Remember, the problem with Gannon and blitzing wasn’t just that he didn’t do it often, it’s that when he did it, it was ineffective because he was bad at surprising anyone with it. Patrick Mahomes said he knew it was coming immediately in the Super Bowl, for instance.
One low-key reason to like Desai is his familiarity with the San Francisco 40-Whinners too. While the Seahawks were 0-3 against the crybabies from the bay, they were also at a pretty large talent discrepancy. That experience would come in handy when Brandon Aiyuk and Debo Samuel come running their mouths in the Linc this fall.
