One of the guys that a lot of Eagles fans and pundits targeted as Sean McDermott's replacement was Packers' defensive line coach Mike Trgovac. Tommy Lawlor mentioned him in his initial thoughts on the job opening and generally he's seen as a rather desirable candidate. Good experience, he's coached in Philly before, and has worked under some very good defensive coaches in his career. The one question with Trgovac is how interested he might be in becoming a defensive coordinator. He has been quoted as saying he wanted to stay in place until his teenage daughter graduates from high school next year.
However, the lure of power and money might have soften Trgovac's stance... Matt Mosley spoke with him at the Super Bowl and says that Trgovac is leaving the door open.
"I also talked to Packers defensive line coach Mike Trgovac about the Eagles' opening. He'd been quoted saying he planned to return to the Packers next season, but he told me that he wanted to leave the door open to a coordinator position."
Steelers secondary coach Ray Horton also expressed interest in a defensive coordinator gig and says he could work in a 3-4 or a 4-3. He also criticized the NFL's policy which prohibits assistant coaches from interviewing until after the Super Bowl.
"It punishes you for having more success," he told me. "The system actually rewards the coaches who don't make the playoffs or get knocked out early."
It's a tough balance between allowing a guy to do what is best for his career, but also protecting teams from having to deal with distractions during the two weeks leading up to the Superbowl. That said, Horton is clearly right. The amount of jobs that will be open after the Superbowl is a fraction of the amount open when the playoffs begin. Who's to say that guys like Dennis Allen & Sean McDermott didn't end up taking jobs that guys like Winston Moss or Ray Horton might have been more qualified for simply for the fact that their teams were dumped from the playoffs early?