Jeff Stoutland Signs Extension with the Eagles
All season we have heard rumors that either Offensive Coordinator Shane Steichen or Defensive Coordinator Jonathan Gannon would leave the Eagles in the offseason. But there is an assistant coach on this team that is perhaps even more vital to their success. Jeff Stoutland. And while rumors swirled that Steichen and Gannon would get head coach jobs, the greater danger was perhaps that someone would make Stoutland an offensive coordinator. But thankfully, we now know that will not happen. Jeff Stoutland has signed an extension with the Eagles. Meaning he will continue to be their Offensive Line Coach and run game coordinator.
Enough cannot be said about the impact Stoutland has on this team. Part of the reason their O Line is so good is the talent they have. Would Jordan Mailata have gone from a guy who had never played Football to a guy with All-Pro consideration under another O-Line Coach? There is no way to actually know. But there is no denying Stoutland had a massive role to play in his development.
And his players will give him full credit. Earlier in the week, Tim McManus joined The Best Show Ever, and he had this to say about Jeff Stoutland.
“Surveying the locker room after the game, a lot of it comes down to Jeff Stoutland. Who we all know is one of the best offensive line coaches in the game. Talking with Jordan Mailata, he likened it to a game of chess… For a while the Niners got a bead on what the Eagles were doing. But Stoutland was able to make the proper adjustments. The way that Mailata put it, once they won that game of chess, once Stoutland figured out what was happening, that is when they took over. And you see the results.
4 TDs on the ground. They are setting record with their ground production this year… Obviously they are a roster that is loaded with talent. But they also have really good coaches. And that was on display this weekend.”
The 60-year-old has been with the Eagles dating back to 2013 and the Chip Kelly era. He has outlasted two head coaches. Stoutland has been here for most of Jason Kelce’s career, and all of the rest of the Eagle’s O Lineman’s careers. He has had a hand in making both Kelce and Lane Johnson All-Pros, and we will see if guys like Mailata, Landon Dickerson, and Cam Jurgens ever get that honor.
And he is not just an O-Line coach. Since 2018 he has also operated as the Eagles’ run game coordinator. You may have noticed during that time this Eagles team has been pretty good at running the ball.
The details of the deal are not yet public. But it is a commitment by him to stick around at least for now. Stoutland could have easily taken a coordinator job with how well-respected he is around the league. But he chose to stay here. In a little over a week, he has a chance to win his second Super Bowl as an Eagles assistant coach. The Eagles O-Line had a large part to play in winning that first one. If they win this one, that will still be the case. The Eagles win by beating people down on both sides of the ball. And that starts along the Offensive Line.
Eagles fans have a lot to be thankful for. Jeff Stoutland sticking around is just another example of that.
