Doug Pederson - FEARLESS: how an underdog becomes a champion

When Doug Pederson interviewed for our head coaching position, he was the offensive coordinator for the Kansas City Chiefs, who had just beaten the Houston Texans in the Wild Card Round of the playoffs. In just six days, they would be playing the Patriots, so I understood that he would not be able to focus his full attention on the interview process and express the type of head coach he envisioned himself to be. But there were still many things that stood out to us and that came across very clearly during our time with him. He had a lot of confidence but in a way that was the opposite of arrogance. He communicated very well. He was very honest. He was very comfortable with himself. He wasnt trying to impress anyone. He was just being himself.

That meant something. For a football coach, being able to listen, relate, and communicate is crucial. So is the ability to gain the confidence of those around you and establish trust on both a strategic level and an emotional level. In todays world, many of the most successful head coaches can relate to the players they are working with and developing. I could see Doug had that ability, and that was important to me.

I had known Doug since he was our quarterback sixteen years earlier. We had signed him as a free agent to be our starter in 1999, and then we drafted Donovan McNabb. I remember how comfortable he was in what could be a difficult situation. He was very committed to helping develop Donovan and he still was able to prepare and perform like the gritty quarterback he was. There was an unselfishness about him that gave us an inkling of what kind of coach he could be.

Ten years after Doug played for the Eagles, he returned as an assistant coach under Andy Reid. Thats when I noticed how diligent he was, how focused he was, and how much attention he paid to details. It was clear he had a real feel for the offensive game. I always enjoyed his evaluations of quarterbacks leading up to the draft. It was interesting to hear his perspective on those guys every year. In addition, he was always looking to teach on the field. On a few occasions, after practice, Doug even approached my then thirteen-year-old son to work with him on his quarterback mechanics. You could see how much he enjoyed coaching and how easy it came to him.

So when we set out to hire a head coach in 2016, I thought back to my previous experiences with Doug. I had believed for a while that he had the ingredients I was looking for in a head coach. I had seen the vision developing for years. But what I didnt know was how much he had evolved as a coach during his time as an offensive coordinator in Kansas City.

In order to find out how he developed during his three years there, I spent hours talking to Andy Reid. Howie Roseman, our general manager, did the same thing separately. I was able to spend a few hours interviewing Coach Pederson, but Andy had been interviewing Doug for yearsevery day at work, both in Philadelphia and Kansas City. Speaking with Andy was a real opportunity to gain more knowledge about a candidate than you ever could in a normal interview process. We discussed all of the attributes a head coach requires to be successful. I questioned everything. How does he handle quarterbacks? How is he in front of the whole room? What is his approach to the offense? Is he creative? Is he risk averse? Is he sensitive to criticism? How does he communicate with other coaches? How does he communicate with players from different backgrounds? We talked about multiple players on the Chiefs and how he related to them. We also went back to some players on the Eagles that we both knew. The conversations were very detailed, and gave me a great understanding of where Doug was as a coach.

I also asked Andy how Doug would handle a losing streak, because even successful teams go through difficult stretches from time to time. Andy talked about a five-game losing streak the Chiefs had during the 2015 season and he said Doug was the most even-keeled coach on the staff. You couldnt tell whether the team was on a winning streak or a losing streak from being around him. I thought back to that during the 2017 season when we lost so many key players to injuries, including our great young quarterback Carson Wentz. At no moment was Doug ever flustered. He always just went back to the drawing board to try to figure out how to deal with the loss and maximize the players who were available. Just as Andy Reid had told me, Doug was unflappable.

What he did during our Super Bowl season was one of the best coaching jobs I have ever seen in the NFL, and really in all sports. The number-one thing he did was create a strong culture within the team where the players owned the decisions and every detail. That brought the team together. He had a perfect balance of not coaching like a dictator, but also not letting the players take too much control either. He formed a partnership. That was probably the most impressive thing. His willingness to listen and ability to communicate made it all possible. Right from the beginning, he had a dynamic plan for the offense. Along with Frank Reich, John DeFilippo, and the offensive staff, he was able to develop Carson and manage the quarterback position with both Carson and Nick Foles. He was willing to take risks when it was smart. He listened to the analytics people when they told him what gave us the best chance to win. His ability to trust his support staff was huge.

When you are a great listener and a great communicatorand you combine that with being smart, focused, and unselfishyou can go very far. Coach Pederson treats everybody with respect and relates well with everyone in the building, from coaches to players to staff. We have a great situation here with an excellent young team and a talented young quarterback. So I think the future is very bright for Doug, and Im looking forward to the next chapter.

Jeffrey Lurie, owner of the Philadelphia Eagles