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Eagles coach Doug Pederson responds to Michael Lombardi’s comments

By Geoffrey Knox

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - AUGUST 31: Head coach Doug Pederson of the Philadelphia Eagles stands on the sidelines during their preseason game against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium on August 31, 2017 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images)
EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - AUGUST 31: Head coach Doug Pederson of the Philadelphia Eagles stands on the sidelines during their preseason game against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium on August 31, 2017 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images) /
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It didn’t take long for Eagles coach Doug Pederson to respond to the comments made by Michael Lombardi.

Being a head coach in the NFL is a thankless job. That goes without saying, and no one is probably more familiar with that than the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles, Doug Pederson. He’s seen his fair share of criticism. That may actually be an understatement. Still, it’s hard to remember if he’s ever been blasted in the manner that he was by Michael Lombardi.

Mr. Lombardi is a media analyst and former assistant to the New England Patriots coaching staff. He’s also a former writer at NFL.com and former analyst at the NFL Network. He also served as an executive for four NFL franchises including the Eagles.

It doesn’t seem as though anyone will ever be able to make the mistake of confusing him with a member of Doug Pederson’s fan club.

Recently he had this to say:

"Now, everybody knows Pederson isn’t a head coach. He might be less qualified to coach a team than anyone I’ve ever seen in my 30-plus years in the NFL. Pederson was barely a coordinator before he became head coach. Can you imagined if we elected a United States president who didn’t have any real training? Sorry, don’t answer that. Look, the Eagles looked increasingly sloppy and unprepared as the 2016 season limped along. That ain’t changing in ’17. Only Carson Wentz can save Pederson’s job, and Wentz actually got worse during his rookie year, not better."

We’ll just stop there. It was actually more said, but you get the idea. To Pederson’s credit, he handled Lombardi’s criticism in the same classy manner that he handles just about everything else.

Here’s part of his response:

"I haven’t seen the article. I’m not sure what you’re talking about. So I don’t pay attention to that. I mean, listen. I’m confident in what I do. He’s not in the building. I coach our coaches and coach our players… If you ask any one of our players or their assistant coaches, I think they would maybe say something a little bit different. I have not read the article. So I can’t respond to it…Somebody here —- Mr. [Jeffrey] Lurie, Howie [Roseman], the guys — thought I was qualified. So, in my opinion, that’s good enough for me. Again, this organization is behind me 100%. Again, I think you could ask the guys in the locker room. That’s my concern. That’s my focus."

It’s definitely football season, and the discussions at the water cooler are right around the corner. Is Lombardi right or will Pederson prove the doubters wrong? Time will tell. We’ll all be waiting to see the next step in his journey when the Eagles face the Washington Redskins in game one.

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