Philadelphia Eagles: Jeffrey Lurie Says Andy Reid Is Here for the Long Run

Philadelphia Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie took over the team in 1994 and hired Andy Reid in 1999. Over the last 13 seasons, Reid has taken the Eagles to the playoffs nine times, including five conference championship games and one Super Bowl, along the way becoming the longest-tenured coach for one team in the four major professional sports.

Reid hasn’t won a Super Bowl, though, despite having an immensely talented supporting cast both in terms of the players and the assistant coaches he’s hired. And he’s coming off an 8-8 season that rates as one of the most disappointing seasons in the history of the franchise.

Yet, reports from Reid’s agent (via Philly.com's Jeff Mclane and Zach Berman) say Lurie has stated time and time again that as long as Lurie is owner of the team, Reid will be the coach. That’s surprising because in a press conference immediately after the 2011 season, Lurie emphasized how completely “unacceptable” (via CSNPhilly.com) the Eagles’ 8-8 record was.

Reid is one of the few NFL coaches who pretty much has complete control over his team—he is not just the head coach, but the team’s executive vice president of football operations. Reid’s deal with the team, though, expires after the 2012 season, and Lurie has yet to extend Reid past this upcoming year.

I really don’t read into what Lurie said about Reid’s job security too much. If the Eagles have another disappointing season and miss the playoffs, I can’t see Reid being too comfortable with his job security heading into 2013.

But as of now, he’s got his owner’s approval, and that’s really what every coach wants, right?