Eagles' Hiring Of Jerrod Johnson Feels Like a Favor, Perceived as More

By bringing in former Houston Texans quarterbacks coach Jerrod Johnson for a still-undefined coaching role with the offensive staff, the Eagles have ultimately hired three of the seven finalists for the offensive coordinator position that went to the 33-year-old Sean Mannion.

Along with Johnson, who has a history with Nick Sirianni dating back to Indianapolis, Philadelphia also brought in former Tampa Bay OC Josh Grizzard as the passing game coordinator.

It was framed that Johnson and the Texans had mutually agreed to move on before the scouting combine, in the shadow of C.J. Stroud’s four-interception implosion against the New England Patriots in the postseason weighing heavily on both sides.

A Houston native, Johnson has been considered an ascending young coach with a bright future since Stroud’s historic rookie season in 2023.

Things have gotten rockier since, but Johnson has gotten several OC interviews around the league and was in the mix for the Eagles in both 2024 and the most recent hiring process.

At 37, the last thing Johnson wanted to do was take a year off and stunt his growth. Sirianni is a fan,so the Eagles are essentially creating something for a coach they like.

The organization has done it in the past. in 2021, Sirianni brought in Jim Bob Cooter, another finalist for the OC job in 2026, as a consultant which rebooted his coaching career. By 2022 Cooter was the passing game coordinator in Jacksonville en route to his current position as Indianapolis OC under Shane Steichen.

Another example is when then-Colts OC Marcus Brady, Sirianni’s successor in Indy, was fired in November of 2022, the Eagles’ head coach brought him in three weeks later to be an offensive consultant who advised the defense during the Super Bowl LVII season.

By the next season, Brady was moved to a senior offensive role with the Eagles before landing a job with the Los Angeles Chargers as passing game coordinator in 2024. He’s now moved on to be the PGC for new Ravens coach Jesse Minter and kickstarted his career again thanks to the help of Sirianni.

Insurance Policies?

Sep 7, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Josh Grizzard talks with wide receiver Emeka Egbuka (2) before the game against the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

The risk of having Grizzard and Johnson on hand to support Mannion for the Eagles is perception.

Some have already jumped to the conclusion that both are in Philadelphia to hedge the bet on Mannion, a 33-year-old with just two years of coaching experience.

The more positive sentiment is that the Eagles are creating the next chapter if Mannion hits the home run and is a head coach by 2027 with two potential successors.

Neither is the case, but perception has a way of taking over reality in a passionate market like Philadelphia, where you can already predict early Mannion struggles leading to calls for multiple “insurance policies.”

It’s something that young defensive coordinator Sean Desai went through when long-time veteran DC and ex-head coach Matt Patricia was added to the defensive staff in 2023.

Neither Grizzard nor Johnson has that kind of Patricia cachet but both have longer resumes than Mannion.