Examining the Philadelphia Eagles' 2009 Coaching Staff

Here is an overview of the coaching staff of the Philadelphia Eagles.

Andy Reid- Head Coach, VP of Football Operations

After Andy Reid finished playing football at BYU (Brigham Young University), he became a graduate assistant in 1982.

Following a one year stint, he became the offensive line coach for several colleges around the country, including San Francisco State (1983-1985), Northern Arizona University(1986), UTEP(1987-1988), and then the University of Missouri (1989-1991).

Andy Reid finally earned his first NFL job in 1992, after almost a decade of coaching at the college level.  He was hired as an offensive line/tight end assistant of the Green Bay Packers, who were then coached by the legendary Mike Holmgren. 

Mike Holmgren influenced Reid, and taught him the philosophies of the west coast offense, which Reid eventually brought to Philadelphia.  Reid impressed Holmgren so much that in 1996 Holmgren placed the "supervisory" tag on Reid to prevent NFL clubs from hiring him as anything other than a head coach unless given permission.  

Reid then spent two seasons as the quarterbacks coach, working with Bret Favre and coaching him during his 1997 M.V.P. campaign.  Other players to have success under Reid's coaching in Green Bay included Mark Chmura and Keith Jackson, who both made the pro bowl under Reid's watch.

Two seasons later (1999), he became the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles, replacing the departed Ray Rhodes.  Jeff Lurie was amazed at Reid's ability to absorb information and then spit it back out as though he was reading straight from an encyclopedia. 

What really sold Reid to Lurie were his notebooks filled with plays, philosophies, and information from Mike Holmgren on how to build a winning team.

This was an unusual hiring at the time, because defensive and offensive coordinators were typically hired as head coaches.  Positional coaches were commonly thought to be ill prepared to lead an entire team, since most of them only had experience coaching a specific position.

However, Reid's hiring and his soon followed success quickly changed all of this.  In today's NFL, owners are no longer reluctant to hire positional coaches, and it is actually common practice throughout the league.  This comes from the direct result of Andy Reid's success coaching the Eagles.

In his decade long tenure as head coach of the Eagles, Andy Reid has set a franchise record for wins (96), winning percentage (.608), and playoff victories (10). 

He also is well known for his ability to hire assistants.  Three of his former assistants are now head coaches, with Brad Childress in Minnesota, John Harbaugh in Baltimore, and Steve Spagnuolo in St. Louis. 

Childress and Harbaugh have both made the playoffs with their teams, while Spagnuolo is going into his first year with the Rams after winning the Super Bowl as the Giants defensive coordinator.

Andy's knowledge as a talent evaluator is also impressive.  He has sent 19 players to 44 pro bowls, and has experienced a lot of success in the NFL draft.  Three of his eight first round picks have been to multiple pro bowls, with Donovan McNabb going to five, and Shawn Andrews and Lito Shepherd going to two each. 

Brodrick Bunkley and Mike Patterson were also two first round picks of Reid, and they now anchor what was the No. 3 overall defense last season.  Corey Simon also had some success in the NFL before his career was ruined with injuries.

The only true busts Reid has taken in the first round are wide receiver Freddie Mitchell and defensive end Jerome McDougal.

Reid probably had his best draft in 2002, as he hit the jackpot with his first four picks—Lito Sheppard, Sheldon Brown, Michael Lewis, and Brian Westbrook. 

One of the most successful coaches of the past decade, Reid has lead the Eagles to five NFC championships in the last eight years and one Super Bowl appearance, though he has yet to win the Lombardi trophy as a head coach. 

Marty Mornhinweg- Offensive Coordinator/Assistant Head Coach

Marty Mornhinweg started four years at quarterback for Montana University. 

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