Report: Eagles hire Florida offensive coordinator as their new quarterbacks coach

The Philadelphia Eagles are hiring Florida Gators offensive coordinator Brian Johnson as their new quarterbacks coach, according to reports from Ian Rapoport and Pete Thamel.

So. Who is this guy, exactly?

Johnson played 41 games as the University of Utah’s quarterback from 2004 through 2008 before failing to latch on in the NFL. He then began his coaching career a couple of years later. An overview:

2011-2012 — Utah quarterbacks coach

2012-2013 — Utah offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach

2014-2016 — Mississippi State quarterbacks coach

2017 — Houston offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach

2018-2019 — Florida quarterbacks coach

2020 — Florida offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach

Johnson notably worked with Dak Prescott during his final two years at Mississippi State. More recently, he coached 2021 NFL Draft prospect Kyle Trask, who took a big leap in 2020. (Not to mention Johnson also has familiarity with Florida pass-catching prospects such as Kyle Pitts and Kadarius Toney.)

The 33-year-old Johnson is not much older than former Eagles passing game coordinator/quarterbacks coach Press Taylor, whom he’s replacing. One can only hope he’s able to coach Carson Wentz (or whoever’s starting at quarterback) harder and more effectively than Taylor did. Johnson’s youth and lack of NFL experience is a question mark in that regard.

When the Eagles talked about getting younger, they clearly weren’t just talking about the roster. New head coach Nick Sirianni is 39. New pass game coordinator Kevin Patullo is also 39. New defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon is 37. New offensive coordinator Shane Steichen is 35. And now Johnson is the youngest of the reported coaching additions thus far. Wonder if they’ll look to add someone more experienced in some capacity.

There seems to be a positive buzz about Johnson as a coach on the rise. We’ll see if he justifies such a reputation in Philly.

RELATED: Tracking Eagles coaching staff changes under Nick Sirianni

UPDATE: Hm, here’s an interesting note: