Pat Shurmur

The Eagles have hired former Cleveland Browns coach Pat Shurmur, an NFL source said Sunday. Shurmur is expected to be named offensive coordinator, but an exact title had yet to be determined. New Eagles coach Chip Kelly likely will handle the offensive play-calling next season. He became one of the NFL's highest-paid coaches by signing a five-year contract worth $32.5 million with the Birds last week, ESPN reported. But he said that he was looking for a coordinator to help in the passing game.

Eagles head coach Chip Kelly, known to quip more than his predecessor, Andy Reid, wasn't exactly forthright. But he was amusing when talking about how the team's play-calling duties will work between him and new offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur. "I will call all the good plays, and Pat will call the bad ones," Kelly said on Monday during a news conference to introduce the new coaching staff. Shurmur was more revealing. "Things haven't been totally talked about [between us]

Eagles head coach Chip Kelly, known to quip more than his predecessor, Andy Reid, wasn't exactly forthright. But he was amusing when talking about how the team's play-calling duties will work between him and new offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur. "I will call all the good plays, and Pat will call the bad ones," Kelly said on Monday during a news conference to introduce the new coaching staff. Shurmur was more revealing. "Things haven't been totally talked about [between us]

MOBILE, Ala. - The Eagles have yet to confirm any of their assistant coaching hires, including the addition of Pat Shurmur as offensive coordinator. But Shurmur walked around Senior Bowl practice Monday with a credential that read "Eagles" under his name. That was about as much confirmation as one would need. Of more importance is how the former Cleveland Browns head coach will jell with new Eagles head coach Chip Kelly. On the surface, they are different. Kelly, who will likely call the plays on offense, is an out-of-the-box-thinking proponent of the spread offense.

It was halftime at the RCA Dome on Nov. 26, and things weren't going well for the Eagles. Having lost starting quarterback Donovan McNabb for the season the week before, the Eagles were in the midst of being blown out by the Indianapolis Colts. Inside the locker room, quarterbacks coach Pat Shurmur noticed he had a voice-mail message from a number in East Lansing, Mich. The message was a potentially life-changing one for Shurmur, who was a candidate for the head coaching job at Michigan State, his alma mater.

Here is the lowdown on the staff of new Eagles head coach Chip Kelly. Notice how many of them have ties to Oregon, where Kelly coached last season: Pat Shurmur, offensive coordinator: In his second tour with the Eagles, he returns after originally spending 10 seasons as the tight ends coach (1999-2001) and quarterbacks coach (2002-08). He most recently served as the head coach for the Cleveland Browns from 2011 to '12. Bill Davis, defensive coordinator: He has 21 years of NFL coaching experience and most recently worked as the Cleveland Browns linebackers coach from 2011 to '12. Dave Fipp, special teams coordinator: Fipp was the assistant special teams coach for the Miami Dolphins from 2011 to '12. Jerry Azzinaro, defensive line/assistant head coach: He served in the same roles on Kelly's staff at Oregon from 2009 to '12. Jeff Stoutland, offensive line: He was Alabama's offensive line coach the last two seasons after spending 14 years as an assistant coach at Miami (2007-10)

Here is how Chip Kelly's new Eagles coaching staff, unofficial so far, appears to be shaping up: Head coach: Chip Kelly Offensive coordinator: Pat Shurmur Defensive coordinator: Billy Davis Quarterbacks: Bill Lazor Wide receivers: Bob Bicknell Running backs: Duce Staley Tight ends: Ted Williams Offensive line: Jeff Stoutland Defensive line: Jerry Azzinaro Linebackers: Rick Minter Secondary: Bill McGovern ...

There was no official word from St. Louis yesterday about the possibility of Eagles quarterbacks coach Pat Shurmur joining new Rams head coach Steve Spagnuolo, but a league source said two NFL teams have asked permission to speak with Shurmur about becoming their offensive coordinator. Shurmur, 43, is an original member of Andy Reid's staff. He spent 3 years coaching tight ends and now has been the quarterbacks coach for seven seasons. Spagnuolo worked with Shurmur the first eight of those seasons, before becoming the Giants' defensive coordinator and winning last season's Super Bowl.

Looks as if an Eagles coach could be going to Cleveland, but not the one initially rumored to be headed there. NFL.com reported last night that the Browns are expected to look at Dick Jauron as a candidate to be defensive coordinator under new coach Pat Shurmur, a former Eagles assistant who most recently ran the Rams' offense. Jauron, who coached the Birds' defensive backs this season, was on Browns president Mike Holmgren's Green Bay staff in the 1990s before becoming a head coach in Chicago and Buffalo.

WE DIDN'T GET all that much closer to solving the great Billy Davis mystery Monday. Chip Kelly talked about how much he liked his new defensive coordinator when they first interviewed, nearly 2 weeks before Davis' hiring last week, but Kelly said he still wanted to talk with some other people - Kelly apparently unconcerned that this guy he says he wanted to hire had other irons in the fire. Kelly eventually acknowledged that the Eagles sought permission to talk with an assistant from one of the Super Bowl teams, and were denied.

PHOENIX - The Hawaiian shirt - an impenetrable jungle of blue, red, white, yellow and green - was familiar, as was the group of faces awaiting Andy Reid's arrival. But a red Kansas City Chiefs helmet adorned the sign that identified the table of the man who coached the Eagles for 14 years. Reid celebrated his 55th birthday at the NFL meetings' AFC coaches breakfast, flanked by a half dozen Philadelphia reporters. KC is a different media market, all right - nobody from Missouri was on hand to ask any questions of the Chiefs' new coach.

It may not be fair to compare Chip Kelly to Andy Reid. It's just inevitable. Reid was here so long, and came so close to winning a Super Bowl so often, that we're bound to use him as a benchmark. That's why, while I was pondering Kelly's actions so far, Reid's infamous binder suddenly came to mind. You remember: Way back in the previous century, Reid impressed the Eagles' brain trust with his comprehensive plan for success in the NFL. That plan was contained in a binder Reid had spent years putting together and revising, a notebook that was said to be at least six inches thick.

Eagles head coach Chip Kelly, known to quip more than his predecessor, Andy Reid, wasn't exactly forthright. But he was amusing when talking about how the team's play-calling duties will work between him and new offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur. "I will call all the good plays, and Pat will call the bad ones," Kelly said on Monday during a news conference to introduce the new coaching staff. Shurmur was more revealing. "Things haven't been totally talked about [between us]

BY DEFAULT, NFL coaches often define themselves more by their podium presence as by their sideline actions. Ray Rhodes' dark and vicious diatribes flavored his 4-year stint as Eagles coach as much as Andy Reid's endless obfuscation marred his 14 years. Chip Kelly on Monday continued the construction of his image in Philadelphia. He explained, and sometimes defended, the hiring of 19 new assistant coaches and the retention of two from Reid's staff. As advertised, Kelly was, at times, informative; at times, glib; at times, abrasive.

WE DIDN'T GET all that much closer to solving the great Billy Davis mystery Monday. Chip Kelly talked about how much he liked his new defensive coordinator when they first interviewed, nearly 2 weeks before Davis' hiring last week, but Kelly said he still wanted to talk with some other people - Kelly apparently unconcerned that this guy he says he wanted to hire had other irons in the fire. Kelly eventually acknowledged that the Eagles sought permission to talk with an assistant from one of the Super Bowl teams, and were denied.

The Eagles don't want a defense that is predictable. So when reporters tried their best to pin down Chip Kelly and new defensive coordinator Bill Davis on whether the Eagles will remain a 4-3 defense or adopt a 3-4, the coaches gave few details. But in doing so - or not doing so - they made their point. Kelly and Davis want a defense that will be indefinable, one that surprises opposing offenses and can't be labeled. "I know it's a vague answer," Davis said Monday. "Everybody wants to know: Is it 3-4 or is it 4-3?

Eagles head coach Chip Kelly, known to quip more than his predecessor, Andy Reid, wasn't exactly forthright. But he was amusing when talking about how the team's play-calling duties will work between him and new offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur. "I will call all the good plays, and Pat will call the bad ones," Kelly said on Monday during a news conference to introduce the new coaching staff. Shurmur was more revealing. "Things haven't been totally talked about [between us]

If you are underwhelmed by the coaching staff Chip Kelly has assembled in the NovaCare Complex, you are not alone. Utilizing stealth and patience, Kelly lured coordinators Pat Shurmur and Billy Davis in an apparent attempt to re-create the magic that was the 2012 Cleveland Browns. But take heart. As long as no one says the words "wide nine" out loud, there is hope. The non-announcement of Davis as defensive coordinator Thursday gave, at long last, some public sign of what Kelly's defense will look like.

Here is the lowdown on the staff of new Eagles head coach Chip Kelly. Notice how many of them have ties to Oregon, where Kelly coached last season: Pat Shurmur, offensive coordinator: In his second tour with the Eagles, he returns after originally spending 10 seasons as the tight ends coach (1999-2001) and quarterbacks coach (2002-08). He most recently served as the head coach for the Cleveland Browns from 2011 to '12. Bill Davis, defensive coordinator: He has 21 years of NFL coaching experience and most recently worked as the Cleveland Browns linebackers coach from 2011 to '12. Dave Fipp, special teams coordinator: Fipp was the assistant special teams coach for the Miami Dolphins from 2011 to '12. Jerry Azzinaro, defensive line/assistant head coach: He served in the same roles on Kelly's staff at Oregon from 2009 to '12. Jeff Stoutland, offensive line: He was Alabama's offensive line coach the last two seasons after spending 14 years as an assistant coach at Miami (2007-10)