Nick Sirianni now officially has his own coaching tree after the Colts hired Shane Steichen and the Cardinals hired Jonathan Gannon on Tuesday.
Sirianni rightfully gets a lot of credit for the Eagles’ success.
Philadelphia’s second-year head coach has far exceeded expectations and proven that he was the perfect target for the role. However, it’s important to remember that Shane Steichen had a massive role in the offense.
Gannon had interviews with Denver, Houston, and Minnesota last offseason and with Philadelphia reaching the Super Bowl and having a top-five defense, it was only a matter of time before he accepted an offer.
Sirianni knew his assistants were wanted and he stated has a plan for their departures.
“Of course, I want to keep these guys, they’re great coordinators, but in the event that I lose them, I have an idea of what I want to do at both spots. The answer is sometimes, yes, it’s in the building, and sometimes it’s outside of the building. But I feel like we have a lot of good options, and I feel like we have a lot of good options in the building that we’d be excited about if that were to happen.”
With Gannon landing one of the coveted vacancies, here’s an updated list of eight potential targets that could lead the Eagles’ defense in 2023.
Eagles DB coach Dennard Wilson
Just 40 years old, Wilson got his start as a scout for the Chicago Bears in 2006 and he’s been climbing the ranks since then. Before joining Sirianni’s staff, Wilson was the defensive passing game coordinator for the New York Jets and helped develop Jamal Adams and Marcus Maye.
This season he led a group that’s among the NFL’s best and Wilson was a huge part of Reed Blankenship’s development as a rookie.
John Pagano -- former Broncos LB coaach
Pagano has familiarity with Sirianni and he’s been the outside linebackers coach in Denver for the past three seasons but has previously served as a defensive coordinator with the Raiders and the Chargers.
Pagano worked with Sirianni from 2013-16 in San Diego.
LB Coach Nick Rallis
Rallis could be a target for Jonathan Gannon in Arizona.
As the linebackers coach, Rallis is responsible for the play of T.J. Edwards, Kyzir White, and Haason Reddick.
Still only 29 years old, Rallis is the brother of WWE Superstar Riddick Moss, now known as MadCap Moss.
Rallis joined Philadelphia’s staff after he finished his fourth season of coaching and 3rd as the Vikings’ defensive quality control coach in 2020.
Before joining the Vikings, Rallis spent the 2017 season as a graduate assistant at Wake Forest.
Another young hire, the 27-year-old Rallis, played linebacker at the University of Minnesota from 2012-16.
Dave Borgonzi Bears LB Coach
Named the Bears linebackers coach after Matt Eberflus was hired, Borgonzi is familiar with Sirianni and has 14 years of coaching experience, including 10 seasons in the NFL with the Colts (2018-19), Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2014-17), and Dallas Cowboys (2011-13).
Prior to this season, Borgonzi had helped develop Darius Leonard into one of the most productive linebackers in the NFL.
In 2019, the Colts’ defense finished seventh in the league against the run after allowing 97.9 yards per game. It marked the first time that the Colts, who ranked eighth in rush defense in 2018, finished the year ranked in the top 10 in run defense in back-to-back seasons since 1976-77. The Indianapolis defense also ranked in the top 10 in interceptions (15, seventh) and takeaways (23, tied-10th).
Eric Washington -- Bills defensive line coach
Washington joined the Bills in 2020 as the team’s defensive line coach and was promoted to senior defensive assistant/ defensive line coach prior to the 2022 season. Previously, he was the defensive line coach (2011-17) and defensive coordinator for the Panthers (2018-19), along with holding various positions with the Bears.
Buffalo’s 2021 defense ranked first in the NFL in fewest points allowed per game (17.0) for the first time in franchise history and also finished first in fewest yards allowed per game
(272.8) and the fewest passing yards per game (163.0). With 19 sacks, Buffalo’s defense also fueled a 4-game win streak to finish the regular season
Carolina ranked second in sacks and fifth in quarterback hits under Washington after he took over for Sean McDermott.
Peter Hansen -- LB's coach Panthers
Hansen recently accepted a job on the Panthers’ new coaching staff as they agreed to terms with him on last Wednesday.
Hansen, 43, held the same position with the Broncos last season and rejoined new defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero at Carolina.
A Vic Fangio disciple, Hansen’s first professional coaching opportunity came in San Francisco from 2011-13 when he worked as a defensive assistant and quality control coach under head coach Jim Harbaugh and defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, connections he made while working with them as a defensive assistant at Stanford.
Kris Richard
In 2021, Richard helped develop third-round draft pick Paulson Adebo, who was the only Saints defender to start all 17 contests in 2021, while tying for the team lead with three interceptions, second among all NFL rookies. Marshon Lattimore continued his improvement under Richard with a career-high 19 passes defended, ranked third in the NFL.
Richard took a break from coaching in 2020 and prior to that, he was the defensive backs coach in Dallas. Now an assistant with the Saints, Richard spent eight years with the Seahawks, the final three as defensive coordinator 2015-17, where his defenses ranked second, fifth, and 11th.
Sean Desai -- Seahawks assistant
The Seahawks associate head coach, Sean Desai is a Temple grad (and former Temple assistant) who has experience as a defensive coordinator (Bears) and has experience in the Vic Fangio defense.
Desai started his NFL coaching career with the Bears in 2013 as a defensive quality control coach. He held that position until he was promoted by then-head coach Matt Nagy to safeties coach in 2019.
Eddie Jackson earned All-Pro under Desai.
