Eagles Rumors: Saints' Dennis Allen to Interview for Head Coaching Vacancy

The Philadelphia Eagles reportedly will interview Saints defensive coordinator Dennis Allen on Wednesday.

Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports reported the Eagles are taking their time with their coaching search and are seeking to interview candidates "on both sides of the ball." 

Allen, 48, has been the Saints' defensive coordinator since 2015. He took over a unit that regularly struggled to provide New Orleans' offense with much assistance and helped turn things around. The Saints finished second in defensive DVOA in 2020, their fourth straight year as a top-10 unit, per Football Outsiders.

Allen previously spent two-plus seasons as the Raiders' head coach, compiling an 8-28 record in a largely unsuccessful tenure. His career 22.2 winning percentage is among the worst in Raiders franchise history.

Despite his failure in his first attempt as a head coach, Allen has done an excellent job of rehabilitating his stock in New Orleans. Linebacker Demario Davis was highly complimentary of Allen's schematic ability in a December interview with Luke Johnson of NOLA.com. 

"He has a great understanding of what the offenses are about to do or how they're going to plan their plan of attack versus us and has built a defense where he can make small adjustments that make a big difference week in and week out," Davis said. "That way that we can kind of shape shift around our strengths and what the offense is going to be able to do or going to attempt to do against us."

The Eagles have cast a wide net in their coaching search as they look to replace Doug Pederson, who was fired after a disappointing 4-11-1 campaign in 2020. 

Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reported the Eagles are telling head coaches they hope to bring back quarterback Carson Wentz next season. Wentz struggled mightily this season before being benched for Jalen Hurts and had a falling out with Pederson that had him considering requesting a trade.