January 19, 2016
After flirting with bringing Steve Spagnuolo to Philly to be their defensive coordinator, the Eagles have turned to Jim Schwartz to lead their defense instead, according to Don Banks of Sports Illustrated.
Breaking: Can confirm Jim Schwartz has agreed to be Eagles new offensive coordinator. Deal not signed yet, but done.
— Don Banks (@DonBanks) January 19, 2016
Banks of course means "defensive coordinator," not offensive coordinator."
Schwartz served as the Titans' defensive coordinator from 2001-08, the Lions' head coach from 2009-13, and then the Bills' defensive coordinator in 2014.
Here is where his defenses have finished as either a defensive coordinator or a head coach:
| Jim Schwartz | Overall | Run | Pass | Points |
| 2001 Titans | 25 | 5 | 31 | 25 |
| 2002 Titans | 10 | 2 | 25 | 11 |
| 2003 Titans | 12 | 1 | 30 | 13 |
| 2004 Titans | 27 | 18 | 26 | 30 |
| 2005 Titans | 19 | 22 | 17 | 29 |
| 2006 Titans | 32 | 30 | 27 | 31 |
| 2007 Titans | 5 | 5 | 10 | 8 |
| 2008 Titans | 7 | 6 | 9 | 2 |
| 2009 Lions (HC) | 32 | 25 | 32 | 32 |
| 2010 Lions (HC) | 21 | 24 | 16 | 19 |
| 2011 Lions (HC) | 23 | 24 | 22 | 23 |
| 2012 Lions (HC) | 13 | 16 | 14 | 27 |
| 2013 Lions (HC) | 16 | 6 | 23 | 15 |
| 2014 Bills | 4 | 11 | 3 | 4 |
If you'll note, the last three seasons Schwartz has focused solely on the defense (2014, 2007-2008 Titans), he has had top seven finishes. By comparison, Spagnuolo's career has been on a downward trajectory since his first stint as a defensive coordinator with the Giants in 2007 and 2008:
| Steve Spagnuolo | Overall | Run | Pass | Points |
| 2007 Giants (DC) | 7 | 8 | 11 | 17 |
| 2008 Giants (DC) | 5 | 9 | 8 | 5 |
| 2009 Rams (HC) | 29 | 27 | 25 | 31 |
| 2010 Rams (HC) | 19 | 17 | 19 | 12 |
| 2011 Rams (HC) | 22 | 31 | 7 | 26 |
| 2012 Saints (DC) | 32 | 32 | 31 | 31 |
| 2015 Giants (DC) | 32 | 24 | 32 | 30 |
Spagnuolo's 2012 Saints defense and his 2015 Giants defense were the worst and third-worst defenses, respectively, in the history of the NFL.
Schwartz is known for running the "wide nine" defense. That will make some Eagles' fans shudder, remembering the days of Jim Washburn and Juan Castillo in Philly. However, Schwartz has had success with it throughout his career, and he uses it as a tool, not as an every-down alignment.
His presence likely means a return to a 4-3 defense, which makes at least one Eagles defender happy, it would appear:
Did somebody say 4-3 👀👀👀🤔🤔🤔🤔.... Or am I dreaming 😴😴
— fletcher cox (@fcoxx_91) January 18, 2016
Additional notes we pointed out last week:
• Most Eagles fans will remember the wide nine as a defense that was very susceptible to the run. As you can see above, there isn't much variance between the run and pass. In fact, Schwartz's defenses were very good against the run his first three years as a defensive coordinator, not so good against the pass.
• Schwartz's first six years as a defensive coordinator were not impressive. In 2006, his defense finished dead last in the NFL in overall yards and 31st in points allowed.
• In 2007, the Titans defense really started to put everything together. They followed up a good 2007 with a 9-0 start (with a 13-3 finish) in 2008, before getting bounced in the playoffs in the divisional round. On the strength of those two seasons, Schwartz landed the Lions head coaching job. The Titans finished 28th in overall defense the year after Schwartz left.
• Schwartz's rookie season as a head coach in Detroit immediately followed the 2008 Lions team that went 0-16. They finished dead last in overall yards, passing yards, and points allowed with an awful roster in 2009. The defense mostly got better throughout Schwartz's tenure with the Lions, but never cracked the top 10.
• Schwartz got canned after the 2013 season, and he went back to focusing on defense in Buffalo under Doug Marrone. The defense was the clear strength of that team, as you can see from the numbers above. In addition to finishing fourth in yards allowed, the Bills led the NFL with 52 sacks.
• In his last three stints as a defensive coordinator, Schwartz has finishes of fifth, seventh, and ninth. That's pretty impressive.
• In 2015, Schwartz was an NFL officiating consultant, offering "a coaching viewpoint on decisions made by the league's officiating department."
Surrounding a rookie head coach in Doug Pederson with top assistants with a lot of experience makes sense. Schwartz has nine seasons of experience as a defensive coordinator, five as a head coach, and four as a position coach.
Follow Jimmy on Twitter: @JimmyKempski
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