"I told Andy, 'If this doesn't work out for either side, I want it written into my contract that I can walk away after one year or you can tell me to take a hike,' " Mudd said back in April.
It's safe to say the Eagles won't be telling Mudd to hop on his motorcycle and hit the road back to his retirement community in Arizona. Overall, the season has been a major disappointment, but the offensive line has been one of the Eagles' success stories.
There were plenty of reasons to be concerned heading into the season. Mudd was implementing a new blocking technique after the lockout-shortened offseason. He ended up starting two rookies. And he essentially remade the line.
Despite all that, Eagles quarterbacks have been sacked only 30 times - down from last season's 49 - heading into Sunday's season finale against the Washington Redskins. The Eagles have the fifth-ranked run offense, and running back LeSean McCoy is second in the league in rushing.
NFL Network analyst Brian Baldinger, a former offensive lineman, recently said on the radio that this version of the offensive line was the best the Eagles have ever had. That may be an overstatement, but it would suggest that Mudd may want to come back for another year and see what he can do with a full offseason.
"I don't know what he's going to do, to tell you the truth," center Jason Kelce said Thursday. "Talked to him a little bit earlier, and I don't think he even knows. I think a lot of it is going to depend on what happens with the entire coaching situation."
Reid, it is expected, will be back. But beyond that is anybody's guess. Castillo, Mudd's predecessor, has been widely speculated as the most likely to go from Reid's staff, or at least be moved into another position. Could he, if Mudd decides to retire, go back to coaching the offensive line?
