Hauck Set to Join Eagles Coaching Staff
PHILADELPHIA (973espn.com) — Former Eagles safety Tim Hauck is set to join Doug Pederson’s coaching staff, according to Alex Marvez of Fox Sports.
Hauck, who was a teammate of Pederson on the 1999 Eagles team, is expected to be the assistant of Cory Undlin, who will be retained as defensive backs coach from Chip Kelly's staff, largely due to lobbying from some of Philadelphia's defensive backs.
Hauck spent most of his 13-year NFL playing career as a special teamer but started for the Eagles opposite Brian Dawkins during a rebuilding period. He stayed in Philadelphia through the 2001 season and also spent time with New England, Green Bay, Denver, Seattle, Indianapolis and San Francisco, retiring after the '02 season with the 49ers.
Known as a hard hitter, Hauck is perhaps best remembered for ending Hall of Fame receiver Michael Irvin's career with a devastating hit at Veteran's Stadium in '99.
After retiring as a player Hauck started his coaching sojourn as the secondary coach at his alma mater, the University of Montana. He first NFL job was in Nashville as the Titans defensive backs coach and he also worked in Cleveland as the DBs coach before returning to the college level as the defensive coordinator at UNLV in '13 under his brother Bobby Hauck.
FootballScoop.com, meanwhile, also reports that Pederson plans to retain three other coaches from Kelly's staff: offensive line mentor Jeff Stoutland, running backs coach Duce Staley and special teams coordinator Dave Fipp.
Staley's place on the new staff was never in doubt as the organization loves him and interviewed him for the big chair. Fipp, on the other hand, was the one undeniable success story of the Kelly regime as Philadelphia's special-teams production was among the best in the league.
In other Pederson coaching news, the Philadelphia Daily News reports that Frank Reich, the former Buffalo quarterback and offensive coordinator in San Diego, is the new coach's first choice to be offensive coordinator. Others still in the running include Kansas City spread-game coordinator Brad Childress, a former OC in Philadelphia under Andy Reid, and the Eagles' offensive chief under Kelly, Pat Shurmur.
The same report in the Daily News claims that Steve Spagnuolo is the first choice on the defensive side of the ball but new Giants coach Ben McAdoo is attempting to keep Spags in North Jersey. Other names bandied about for DC include former Lions head coach Jim Schwartz and ex-Browns mentor and former North Penn High School coach Mike Pettine.
SECOND CHANCE A BETTER FIT FOR CHIP:
Chip Kelly’s reputation as an offensive genius took a hit in Philadelphia over the past three seasons.
In fact, those who still swear by Kelly’s acumen are reading from the talking points, not watching the film. The harsh truth is that Kelly’s offensive philosophy is simplistic and repetitive by traditional NFL standards, a scheme built of the foundation of tempo and little else.
However, that’s not to say that gargantuan “S 8” on his play card can’t work, at least in the short term before the grind of the way Kelly does things wears on the lesser roster afforded to him in the regular season.
-John McMullen covers the Eagles and the NFL for 973ESPN.com. You can reach him at jmcmullen44@gmail.com or on Twitter @JFMcMullen
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