Philadelphia Eagles: Duce Staley receives a promotion after all
What originally seemed like a missed opportunity turns out well for the now former running backs coach of the Philadelphia Eagles. Duce Staley’s been promoted.
The Philadelphia Eagles have done an excellent job of several things during the past few seasons. Most notably, they’ve done everything that they can to take care of their core players and their coaches. That was on full display this week. February 20th was a big day for the organization as two of their coaches received a promotion. Mike Groh takes over as offensive coordinator, and Duce Staley climbed the coaching ladder as well.
According to ESPN’s Josina Anderson, Staley will be taking over as the Eagles new assistant head coach. He’s now, basically, reporting directly to head coach Doug Pederson.
Take a look.
#Eagles coach Duce Staley's work is being recognized with a new title today: Assistant head coach/ running backs.
— JosinaAnderson (@JosinaAnderson) February 20, 2018
What’s next?
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Some of you are probably now asking what this new gig means for Staley. It’s simple. He’ll still be in charge of the running backs, but it doesn’t stop there. The Eagles’ plan is to continue to groom him for what will soon be a chance to take over as an offensive coordinator or, even better, a head coaching opportunity somewhere in the future.
He’s come a long way from the young running back who used to inspire a reverberating chant of ‘DUCE’ through Veterans Stadium for six seasons and, eventually, Lincoln Financial Field for another. Fans rejoiced every time he touched the football.
That excitement would lead to some disappointment, however, as his seven-year run in Philly ended in 2003. He left ‘The City of Brotherly Love’ thanks to free agency (and the emergence of Correll Buckhalter and Brian Westbrook). The Eagles would reach the Super Bowl a year later, but fans would miss out on the opportunity to see him play with the likes of Terrell Owens.
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He returned in 2011 as a special teams quality control coach, and he’s been here ever since. Now, he has a Super Bowl ring and a new position. It’s been a joy to watch as a fan. We’ll be looking forward to where the next fork in the road leads him.