The old saying of "It's not what you know, it's who you know" most definitely applies to the NFL and that certainly was the case on the Philadelphia Eagles.
Philly went through a complete overhaul with the coaching staff this offseason on the offensive side of the ball, with Sean Mannion taking over as the offensive coordinator. The most significant change, though, came with the offensive line: former offensive line coach and run game coordinator Jeff Stoutland left the Eagles and was replaced by Chris Kuper as offensive line coach and Ryan Mahaffey as run game coordinator, as well as tight ends coach.
Sports Illustrated's John McMullen shared some more insights into how the coaching staff in Philly was built this offseason. Kuper's connection with someone on the Eagles' coaching staff helped him land the new job.
"Relationships remain everything in the NFL, and Kuper’s prior connection to Fangio proved pivotal. Multiple league sources confirmed that (Vic) Fangio — now in his third season as the Eagles’ defensive coordinator and one of the most respected defensive minds in football — strongly endorsed Kuper for the job. Hall of Famer Munchak added his own positive recommendation. That high-level backing gave Sirianni the confidence to pull the trigger on the hire."
Vic Fangio helped Chris Kuper land the offensive line coach job with the Eagles
Kuper had previously worked with Fangio on his coaching staff when Fangio was the head coach of the Denver Broncos from 2019 through 2021. During that time, Kuper was the assistant offensive line coach.
After Fangio was fired from Denver, Kuper would end up landing with the Minnesota Vikings in 2022 as their new offensive line coach. Kuper had the job until last season when he was not retained during the offseason.
Everyone in Philly knows that Kuper has some big shoes to fill with Stoutland's departure after 13 years with the franchise. Stoutland worked with several of the best offensive linemen in the NFL over the last decade-plus, including Jason Peters, Jason Kelce, Lane Johnson, Jordan Mailata, Cam Jurgens, Landon Dickerson, Brandon Brooks, Evan Mathis, and more.
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Eagles fans are hoping that Kuper can keep up the success in 2026, but it's going to be tough to top what Stoutland did over his 13 years as a future Hall of Fame assistant coach.