BLOOMINGTON, Minn. — Does Duce Staley believe he is ready to be an NFL offensive coordinator?
“I am,” Staley said. “I know I am.”
Well, Pat Shurmur has only one spot open on his newly assembled Giants coaching staff: offensive coordinator. And, wouldn’t you know, Shurmur and Staley have a long and strong relationship. And Shurmur has said not everyone he is interested in is currently available, a description that fits Staley, the Eagles’ running backs coach, who is busy prepping for Super Bowl LII. This could be a connection.
“You hear about rumors, you hear about this, you hear about that, during this time rumors are definitely out there, being spread around,” Staley said Wednesday during the Eagles media availability. “Hey, me as an individual, of course I don’t want to stay still in this business, but my focus right now is on the Philadelphia Eagles and this Super Bowl, all that will come afterwards. If I’m blessed one day to move up the ladder and become one, I’ll thank God and move on, but right now it’s all about the Philadelphia Eagles and this Super Bowl.
“That’s another day, that’s another time and if that day comes, I will address it then, but not right now.”
Staley, 42, is well-respected around the Eagles. He was a hard-nosed running back for them and, since 2013, has coached their running backs. Shurmur is keeping Craig Johnson, the running backs coach under Ben McAdoo, and will call the plays in his first year as Giants head coach. That means his offensive coordinator position will not immediately include all the heavy lifting; in other words, possibly a perfect fit for Staley.
There is an extensive history together. When Staley was a player in Philadelphia, Shurmur, at various times, coached the tight ends, offensive line and quarterbacks. When Staley joined Andy Reid’s coaching staff, Shurmur was the offensive coordinator. So Staley has seen Shurmur from two different perspectives.
“Great coach,” Staley said. “You’re getting a smart coach. One thing I saw early in his career, one thing I was able to see was how smart he was with matchups and how smart he was coaching the tight ends and I said to myself then, ‘He’s gonna rise up the ladder very quickly.’ You’re able to see what he was doing in Minnesota, you’re able to see what people didn’t know what he was doing behind the scenes when he was there with Chip [Kelly]. He had his thumb in on that.”
Jeff Stoutland, the Eagles’ offensive line coach, filled that position when Shurmur ran the offense in Philly.
“Very fair, very honest, very matter-of-fact, I think all the players will respect him,’’ Stoutland said. “He’s a former offensive lineman, I think he’ll probably want to build from within. You guys got a good head coach. Good person.”
After a two-year run as the Browns head coach, Shurmur returned to the Eagles, went to the Vikings and now gets to call the shots with the Giants, right down the road from Philadelphia.
“It will be awesome,’’ Staley said. “As a head coach, we all know you got to have a little different personality as a head coach, and Pat’s gonna fit right in, especially in the New York area. Especially with those players on the team, he’s very passionate and he’s driven by his job and those guys will follow him and they will fight to the death for him.’’
In time, Staley might be joining Shurmur in that fight.