During the 2023 regular season, a lot went wrong for the Philadelphia Eagles. The team was just not the same juggernaut in the second half of the year. Philadelphia ended up losing six of their last seven games this season and were bounced in the wildcard round by Tampa Bay. Just a disastrous end to the season for the Eagles. Now, head coach Nick Siriani is on the hot seat and could still be fired.
Internal changes needed to be made if the Eagles want a chance at redemption next season. That is why Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network reported that Philly has fired DC Sean Desai. It was his first season with the Eagles and it ended quite poorly. Philadelphia needs a new DC for the 2024 season. Defense was a problem in 2023 and it needs to be fixed for next season if they want to be a championship contender again.
Sean Desai has been fired by the Eagles after one season as DC
Sources: #Eagles coach Nick Sirianni has let go defensive coordinator Sean Desai, who lost play-calling duties late in the season.
Desai is likely to be in the mix for other DC opportunities.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 21, 2024
After their run to the Super Bowl in the 2023 postseason, the Eagles were stripped of the offensive and defensive coordinator this past season. Jonathan Gannon was their DC, but he took the head coaching job in Arizona. That left a vacancy the Eagles needed to fill. In this past offseason, the team hired Sean Desai to be their DC in 2023. Desai spent 2013-2021 with the Bears and worked his way up through the ranks.
He started as a quality control coach and finished his time with Chicago as their defensive coordinator. Following the 2021 season. Desai was with the Seahawks in 2022 as an associate head coach and defensive assistant. Philadelphia felt Desai was the right person to be their next DC and they hired him for the 2023 season. After a blowout loss to the Cowboys in December, Desai was demoted from DC and Matt Patricia took over the play-calling duties. However, Patricia was not much better than Desia was at DC.
Sean Desai has been fired by the #Eagles, a decision made by Nick Sirianni.
Per @RapSheet. pic.twitter.com/kGE4d7nJe9
— Eagles Nation (@PHLEaglesNation) January 21, 2024
Over their last four games of the season, the Eagles were allowing an average of 30+ points per game. That’s not a recipe for winning games when their offense is also struggling. Philadelphia’s defense was not the same dominant unit that they were in the 2022 regular season. The Eagles had a league-leading 70 sacks last season. Their defense had only 43 in 2023. Additionally, the Eagles were in the bottom 10 in yards allowed, points allowed, interceptions, and sack percentage. Philly needs to find the right DC this offseason who can turn that unit back into one of the best in the league.