***
I've known this was coming for a while. Jim Johnson is in really bad shape. The Eagles delayed the announcement as long as possible, but decided to make it official - Sean McDermott is now the Defensive Coordinator. I've been told by multiple sources that JJ is in dire straits. The Eagles had to make the move. We all love Jim Johnson, but he's fighting for his life and the Eagles have to move on at this point. He's always been a team guy and I think he's fine with how the situation has been handled.
I'm not going to say a lot about Jim right now. We're all hoping that he somehow makes it out of this. He's got the support of Eagles Nation.
As for Sean, the organization has complete confidence in him. Sean is a guy that has been groomed to move up. The question was really whether we could keep him around long enough to make him a coordinator. Spags was in his spot a few years back. He did a great job for the Giants and now has the challenge of restoring the Rams to winning ways. That should be interesting.
I'm sure McDermott will keep most of the defense intact, but he will certainly put his own stamp on things. I'm not sure exactly what changes he'll make. We'll have to wait for games to see what he does. I'm certainly excited for Sean. He's come from nowhere to now have the prestigious position of Eagles Defensive Coordinator. Think about these names: Marion Campbell, Jeff Fisher, Wade Phillips, Bud Carson, and Jim Johnson. I'm not sure any organization has a group that impressive over the last 25 years. I'm sure it pains Sean to get the job in this way, but Jim would want him to focus on the team, the job at hand. The most basic instinct of a coach is "to coach". You deal with what you can control. Sean has to worry about his players for now.
Unfortunately for Jim he can only listen to doctors and pray for the best. That's got to be tough on someone who is so used to being in control. Stay strong, JJ. Our prayers are with you.
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Friday, July 24, 2009
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4 comments:
Hmmm...
Sean McDermott is a product of William & Mary.
Super Bowl winning coach Mike Tomlin is a product of William & Mary.
Thomas Jefferson is a product of William & Mary... OK, I'll stop.
I can't wait to get to Lehigh and watch McDermott. Am I a nerd for looking forward to watching a COACH? LOL.
I want to send my prayers and hopes out to JJ before anything else.
I'm wondering how much of a wondercoach Spags is going to look like trying to ressurect the Rams. It's not going to be so easy when you don't have Michael Strahan, Justin Tuck and Osi Umenyora rushing the passer. If he somehow rights the Rams ship I'm going to be terribly impressed with him.
It's terrible news about Jim Johnson but the writing was kind of on the wall when he took his leave of absence from the team. Jim doesn't seem like the kind of guy that anything other than dire circumstances would seperate him from his spot as DC.
I don't know too much about Mcdermont but here's hoping he soaked up plenty of JJ's knowledge and maybe has a new wrinkle or two of his own to add.
I think Spagnuolo will be okay. Chris Long (now in his 2nd season) and rookie James Laurinaitis are high character, work-ethic kind of guys. And Leonard Little did have 6 sacks last season. That's more than our starting LDE.
Plus, their division isn't the most competitive.
I just like the guy. If he hadn't taken the Giants job, there's a strong possibility he'd be our D.C. right now.
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