Jeffrey Lurie

The guard raised the wooden gate at the entrance to the NovaCare Complex on Thursday morning and a car slid inside the grounds carrying former Bears head coach Lovie Smith to another of the interview sessions that have so far defined the Eagles' offseason. As far as we know, Smith was the seventh candidate to replace Andy Reid to be interviewed by owner Jeffrey Lurie, team president Don Smolenski, and general manager Howie Roseman. His meeting followed ones with Bill O'Brien, Mike Nolan, Keith Armstrong, Chip Kelly, Mike McCoy, and Brian Kelly, and precedes ones, if they take place as expected, with Jay Gruden, Gus Bradley, and Bruce Arians.

The Eagles are in the second week of their head coaching search, and while it is too early to panic, it's a good time to take stock of where they have been and where they are going. And to ask: Whom exactly does Jeffrey Lurie want to be his next coach, and does he even know at this point? This is what we know: After meeting with former Bears coach Lovie Smith on Thursday, the Eagles have interviewed at least seven candidates. There are Oregon coach Chip Kelly, Penn State coach Bill O'Brien, Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly, Broncos offensive coordinator Mike McCoy, Falcons defensive coordinator Mike Nolan, Falcons special-teams coordinator Keith Armstrong, and Smith.

The Eagles' search for a head coach should be judged on the result, not on the process. That is good news for Jeffrey Lurie and his sidekicks, because right now, the process isn't looking all that impressive. They have succeeded only in padding their frequent-flier accounts and procuring raises for Chip Kelly, Bill O'Brien, and Dirk Koetter. The contrast was sharp Monday. Andy Reid, introduced as the new Chiefs head coach during a news conference in Kansas City, already was meeting with assistant coaches and analyzing his new roster.

Jon Gruden would like to be an NFL head coach again, and the Eagles would be wise to speak with him, Ron Jaworski said Monday. Agreeing with that this morning was former Eagles pro personnel director Mike Lombardi. Meanwhile, forget about Alabama head coach Nick Saban, despite fans clamoring on Twitter in the wake of the Crimson Tide's trouncing of Notre Dame, 42-14, in Monday night's college football championship game. "I don't have any unfinished business in the NFL ... It's not even something I want to do," Saban said Saturday, according to Brian Hamilton of the Chicago Tribune.

Chip Kelly considered the Eagles' offer to be their next head coach, but ultimately decided to stay at Oregon, a source close to the situation said Sunday night. It seemed initially as if there was going to be a showdown between the Eagles and the Browns for Kelly. But when the dust settled after the Eagles' nine-hour interview on Saturday, the Browns stepped out and Kelly's two choices were down to leaving for the Eagles or staying with the Ducks. The Cleveland contingent, headed by owner Jimmy Haslam and CEO Joe Banner, jetted back to Cleveland on Sunday morning to reboot the team's head coaching search without Kelly, an NFL source said.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The Eagles met with Chip Kelly in Arizona on Saturday, and were making a last-ditch effort to lure the Oregon coach from signing with the Browns, a source close to the situation said. Kelly was expected to make a decision by the end of the night. He would either accept an offer from the NFL to become a head coach or return to Oregon. The Browns had the first interview with Kelly on Friday. The Bills followed. An NFL Network report on Friday night said that Cleveland was close to landing the coach, but an NFL source said that Kelly would wait until he interviewed with all the teams he promised to meet.

Is Chip off the block for the Eagles? The Browns were close to signing Oregon coach Chip Kelly just hours after his Ducks beat Kansas State in the Fiesta Bowl, according to an NFL Network report Friday evening. Still, a source close to the situation said that it was not a done deal and that Kelly could entertain other offers or even return to college. ESPN reported that he was scheduled to meet with the Bills on Friday night and the Eagles on Saturday. The Eagles did not confirm the interview.

Is Chip off the block for the Eagles? The Browns were close to signing Oregon coach Chip Kelly just hours after his Ducks beat Kansas State in the Fiesta Bowl, according to an NFL Network report Friday evening. Still, a source close to the situation said that it was not a done deal and that Kelly could entertain other offers or even return to college. ESPN reported that he was scheduled to meet with the Bills on Friday night and the Eagles on Saturday. The Eagles did not confirm the interview.

Here's a proposition for Jeffrey Lurie, something that should add a little incentive as he sets out to hire a new head coach for the Eagles. The way things have turned out, Lurie is competing for a coach with longtime friend and colleague Joe Banner, who now runs the Cleveland Browns. That competition goes a long way toward explaining the veiled insults and revisionist history Lurie wove into his news conference Monday. Meanwhile, Andy Reid's search for a new job has led to interviews with Kansas City and Arizona, two places where the owners are not exactly perceived as gold-standard material.