Sources: Eagles DC Schwartz taking year off
PHILADELPHIA — Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz intends to take the year off from coaching in 2021 as he contemplates retirement, sources told ESPN.
Philadelphia will be in the market for a new defensive coordinator as it embarks on what promises to be an offseason full of significant change for the 4-10-1 team.
Schwartz, 54, intends to let his contract expire. He has had a couple of minor procedures over the past year-plus, including hip and eye surgeries, and believes stepping back from the daily grind of coaching would be in his best interest, a source said.
He also took a year sabbatical in 2015 after being let go as Buffalo Bills defensive coordinator and worked with the NFL’s officiating department in a consulting position.
Schwartz joined Doug Pederson’s staff in 2016 and helped deliver the city its first Super Bowl title a year later. The Eagles’ defense finished No. 1 against the run and fourth in points allowed (18.4) during the championship run in 2017. Schwartz’s unit gave up 17 total points in playoff wins against the Atlanta Falcons and Minnesota Vikings prior to the 41-33 Super Bowl shootout against Tom Brady and the New England Patriots.
The Eagles ranked among the top 10 in rushing defense (1st, 93.4 YPG), red zone defense (2nd, 49.5%), third-down defense (3rd, 35.4%), scoring defense (7th, 20.8 PPG) and takeaways (9th, 94) over his first four seasons.
Known best for allowing his defensive linemen to pin their ears back and attack, the Eagles are in the top five in sacks in 2020.
Issues have crept in over the past two seasons in particular, however. An Achilles’ heel last season was the defense’s propensity to give up the big play, yielding 15 plays of 40-plus yards through the air, second worst in the NFL. In 2020, the group struggled to generate turnovers and entered Week 17 with the second-fewest interceptions (six).
