Missing Out On The Hot OC Candidates Comes With A Silver Lining For The Eagles

By missing out on Mike McDaniel and Brian Daboll, the Eagles OC search can shift from recruitment to a fact-finding mission.

Dec 7, 2025; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel reacts during warmups before the game between the Miami Dolphins and New York Jets at MetLife Stadium. | Ed Mulholland-Imagn Images

PHILADELPHIA - Despite a skewed local perception, all the available evidence we have suggests that the Eagles’ offensive coordinator position is not attractive to candidates who have multiple options.

And, ultimately, that might not be a bad thing.

By all accounts, a couple of former head coaches – Mike McDaniel and Brian Daboll – were at the top of the Eagles' wish list and won’t be entertaining the idea of traversing the complicated Philadelphia terrain with the short leash Jeffrey Lurie typically provides. 

McDaniel never even took a formal interview with the Eagles, but did speak to the team virtually earlier this week before deciding that the Los Angeles Chargers were his preferred destination absent a head-coaching offer.

Daboll, who has a strong relationship with Eagles’ head coach Nick Sirianni, interviewed with Philadelphia on Tuesday before reportedly deciding on his course, which will either be the top spot in Buffalo or the OC gig with the defensive-minded Robert Saleh in Tennessee. 

Because of the massive amount of openings around the NFL, for candidates like McDaniel and Daboll, this was more of a transfer portal recruiting process than a fact-finding mission, so perhaps the silver lining on “missing out” on the high-profile candidates will be a better process to identify a sharper option for what the Eagles need on the offensive side of the football.

Contingencies Have Worked For the Eagles In The Past

Former Houston Texans offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik walks on the field before the game against the Los Angeles Rams at NRG Stadium. | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

The idea of McDaniel or Daboll being better fits than Bobby Slowik, Josh Grizzard, or Zac Robinson was always rooted in perception and groupthink. A few years ago Slowik himself was in the hot-candidate category right up until he wasn't.

The Eagles should have always been searching for a coach eager to cash in on a unique opportunity, not making promises of autonomy to the flawed flavors of the month, whose past failures are being written off because of [insert excuse].

In previous head-coaching searches, Lurie and the Eagles have had success by going off-book (Andy Reid and Sirianni), or avoiding the land mines (whether by luck or design) of the hot candidates (Adam Gase, Ben McAdoo, Josh McDaniels), and embracing contingencies like Doug Pederson and Sirianni.

The one-time Lurie deviated from that and went high-profile (Chip Kelly), he got an early spike before things imploded.

There are few remaining OC candidates who would have the kind of leverage like McDaniel or Daboll to demand concessions from the Eagles or anyone else, meaning a clearer picture where Sirianni can hand off the offense to the new OC with a fresh perspective yet still play his CEO role without complications.

In other words, losing out on the five-star recruits could make the process more useful and effective for the Eagles.  

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