Dennard Wilson, who served as the Eagles’ defensive passing game coordinator and defensive backs coach last season, has mutually agreed to part ways with the team, according to the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
Wilson was among the finalists for the Eagles’ defensive coordinator job, and Rapoport noted that a departure is “often the outcome” when a coach in the organization is “passed over for a promotion.”
The Eagles opened up a search for a new defensive coordinator after Jonathan Gannon agreed to become the new head coach of the Arizona Cardinals. Gannon departed from Philadelphia a season after which the team tallied 70 sacks and allowed a 20.2 points per game average in regular season play.
The Eagles interviewed multiple coaches for the role, from Wilson to Los Angeles Rams defensive backs coach Chris Shula. In the end, Eagles general manager Howie Roseman picked Sean Desai to fill the vacancy. Desai spent the 2022 campaign with the Seattle Seahawks as an associate head coach and a defensive assistant.
Wilson’s future with the Eagles was up in the air following Roseman’s call to hire Desai to become the team's new defensive coordinator. Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni did note during a press conference at the 2023 NFL Scouting Combine that he would feel “lucky” if Wilson were to stay put as the team’s defensive backs coach.
Article Continues Below“Yeah, we’ll obviously go through that as we continue on,” Sirianni said on Feb. 28. “Does the staff dynamic fit? Does Sean [Desai] have anybody? But Dennard [Wilson] is a great football coach. He’s done an outstanding job.
“If he is still our defensive backs coach, we’ll be lucky to have him because we know how good of a coach he is. … I think the world of Dennard and how good of a football coach he is.”
Wilson was well-liked by a multitude of Eagles players. For one, cornerback Darius Slay took to Twitter last month to note that Wilson “should be a DC in the NFL.”
The Eagles are expected to make a few more moves with their coaching staff. The reigning NFC champions will now conduct a search for a new DBs coach, and they have been linked with Matt Patricia, who reportedly has a “shot to land” on their defensive staff.