Report: Eagles will interview Dennis Allen on Wednesday

I woke up today thinking that the Philadelphia Eagles might officially hire Josh McDaniels to be their head coach. Instead, three new candidates emerged in their quest to replace Doug Pederson.

First, it was Nick Sirianni. Then it was John Fassel.

And now the Eagles will interview New Orleans Saints defensive coordinator Dennis Allen for their vacancy on WEDNESDAY, according to a report from NFL insider Jason La Canfora.

The 48-year-old Allen recently became available to interview with the Saints choking in the playoffs yet again on Sunday evening. He’s received some head coaching buzz in recent years despite his failed stint with the Oakland Raiders from 2012 through 2014, where he went 8-28 before getting fired.

Allen returned to New Orleans, where he worked for five seasons, in 2015 and eventually replaced Rob Ryan as defensive coordinator. Here’s how Allen’s defenses have ranked in terms of DVOA:

2012 Denver Broncos — 6th
2015 New Orleans Saints (took over in late November) — 32nd
2016 New Orleans Saints — 28th
2017 New Orleans Saints — 6th
2018 New Orleans Saints — 8th
2019 New Orleans Saints — 8th
2020 New Orleans Saints — 2nd

As you can see, Allen’s mostly been successful as a defensive coordinator. The Eagles actually interviewed him for their DC job nearly 10 years ago to the day but he ended up in Denver instead. And then the Eagles simply moved their offensive line coach to defensive coordinator. But I digress.

Allen’s failures in Oakland raise questions about his legitimacy as a head coach. Then again, it’s not like he had great talent to work with. The Raiders’ primary quarterbacks were Carson Palmer, Terrelle Pryor, Matt McGloin (!), and a rookie Derek Carr.

Allen might know defense and he might be a better leader than he was seven years ago. But he’ll need to sell the Eagles on having a strong offensive plan.

Here’s a recap of where things stand with the Eagles’ coaching search:

REQUESTED INTERVIEWS

49ers DC Robert Saleh
Titans OC Arthur Smith
Rams DC Brandon Staley
Buccaneers DC Todd Bowles
Patriots ILB coach Jerod Mayo
Eagles assistant head coach/RB coach Duce Staley
Panthers OC Joe Brady
Cowboys OC Kellen Moore
Patriots OC Josh McDaniels
Chiefs OC Eric Bieniemy
Colts OC Nick Sirianni
Saints DC Dennis Allen

RUMORED INTEREST

Chiefs QB coach/passing game coordinator Mike Kafka
Bills OC Brian Daboll
Oklahoma HC Lincoln Riley
Ohio State HC Ryan Day
Cowboys STC John Fassel

KEEPING TABS ON OTHER NFL COACHING SEARCHES

Houston Texans — (Vacant)
Detroit Lions — Dan Campbell
Los Angeles Chargers — Brandon Staley
Atlanta Falcons — Arthur Smith
New York Jets — Robert Saleh
Jacksonville Jaguars — Urban Meyer