Philadelphia Eagles: Has Duce Staley seen his ceiling with this team?

It’s a position no one wants to be in at work. Has Duce Staley risen as high as he can with the Philadelphia Eagles? Is he at his ceiling?

There are two types of jobs, stepping stone jobs and career destinations. There are some things that we’re only willing to do because we’re certain that it will lead to other opportunities, so we stomach long hours and occupational hazards with the hope of being recognized and or promoted. When Duce Staley rejoined the Philadelphia Eagles in 2011 as a special teams quality control coach, he did so because he had bigger dreams.

Say the name ‘Duce’ to any Eagles fan, and you’ll get a smile. He’s one of the most beloved Eagles of all time, both as a player and coach. His teammates loved him. His fellow coaches love him. His players love him.

Just think about it. He’s survived three coaching regimes (Andy Reid, Chip Kelly, and Doug Pederson). Currently, he’s Philly’s assistant head coach and running backs coach, but when the Eagles said farewell to Mike Groh at the end of the 2020 season, there were fans and members of the media that were opposed to seeing him in the offensive coordinator position.

Recently, Joseph Santoliquito of the Philly Voice reported that Staley wasn’t even interviewed for that vacancy, a role that he has desired for years. Josh Kendall of The Athletic reported that Staley had subsequently contacted Will Muschamp and the South Carolina Gamecocks, where he’s an alum, about an opening on their staff and was rebuffed (a subscription is required to read the story). That story was shut down by NBC Sports Philly’s Reuben Frank who stated the following.

"A league source familiar with Duce Staley’s thinking shot down a report on a national website that the Eagles’ long-time assistant coach contacted South Carolina football officials about a vacancy on their coaching staff."

It’s difficult to believe that Staley would leave job security, the city that loves him, and an NFL squad that’s near and dear to his heart to pursue an opportunity on a struggling staff at a school he left almost 25 years ago. The truth is, however, no one knows what Staley is thinking. There’s also another issue at play. No one would blame him if he is frustrated.

He’s been passed over multiple times for different opportunities including 2018 when Philly decided to give Mike Groh the OC’s chair and not him. Two years later, Philly doesn’t even give him an interview and then decides rather than give Duce or anyone else the OC position they’d be better suited to walk into 2020 with no offensive coordinator at all.

Most of us would be frustrated in that position. That leads to a question. If Philly doesn’t see him as an OC, the head coaching job would definitely be out of the question if that ever opened, wouldn’t it? Of course, it hasn’t, but still. Duce Staley may have reached the ceiling in Philly. That isn’t to say he has or things couldn’t change, but here’s one thing that we can all agree on. No one wants to go to work and feel like they’re in that position.