Eagles Committed to Finishing First Round of Interviews

PHILADELPHIA (973espn.com) — The intrigue continues as One NovaCare Way.

It might just be a high-stakes game of chicken or the Eagles may not be as sold on Adam Gase as originally thought.

The reported second interview with Gase set for this weekend is now more open-ended, according to CSN Philadelphia. The Eagles still want to talk with the Chicago Bears offensive coordinator but want to finish a first round of interviews before doubling back.

The strategy may stretch back to 2013 when the search committee of Jeffrey Lurie, Howie Roseman and Don Smolenski committed to Chip Kelly, the flavor of the month that year, very early in the process and were forced to reboot things once the ex-Philadelphia coach claimed he was staying at Oregon. Kelly, of course, eventually changed his mind and accepted the Eagles' offer.

(Listen to John McMullen discuss the Eagles coaching search)

Next up on the docket for Lurie and Co. are two coaches still in the playoff hunt, Kansas City offensive coordinator Doug Pederson, and Cincinnati defensive coordinator Paul Guenther, a native of Richboro, Penn. who went to college at Ursinus.

Pederson, the ex-Eagles quarterback and Andy Reid protege who mentored Donovan McNabb, is set to meet with the Eagles on Sunday, a day after the Chiefs meet the Houston Texans on Wild Card Weekend. Guenther and the Bengals are also in action Saturday against Pittsburgh. He would also be available to chat as early as Sunday but already has one stop on his itinerary that day, the Cleveland Browns.

The highly-regarded Gase, meanwhile, continues his tour around the league. After meeting with the Eagles Tuesday and Cleveland Wednesday, Gase was in South Florida Thursday to interview with the Dolphins and has Friday appointment with New York Giants.

The NFL Network's Rand Getlin reported Thursday afternoon that Miami was "making a strong, potentially persuasive push" for the 37-year-old Gase, something that backs up a source who told 973espn.com that the Dolphins might try to nail things down with Gase and keep him in Davie so the Eagles never get a second opportunity with him.

If the decision is made for them, Philadelphia could be moving toward a "Back to the Future" scenario with Pederson, a name that would certainly indicate the Eagles' brass wants to recreate the environment and success of the Reid regime.

-John McMullen covers the Eagles and the NFL for 973ESPN.com. You can reach him at jmcmullen44@gmail.com or on Twitter @JFMcMullen