Philadelphia won’t officially announce Pederson’s hiring until the Chiefs are eliminated from the playoffs, but an Eagles spokesman said Thursday that the team has “concluded our search for a head coach. No further interviews are scheduled.” Kansas City plays New England on Saturday in the AFC divisional round.
Pederson,47, has served as Kansas City’s offensive coordinator since 2013, working under former Eagles coach Andy Reid. During that time, he’s helped Alex Smith become one of the NFL’s most consistent starting quarterbacks. He also served as the Eagles’ quarterback coach and offensive quality control coordinator from 2009-2012.
MORE: SN’s 2015 NFL awards | 49ers give ex-Eagles coach Chip Kelly another shot
After interviewing several candidates, including longtime Giants head coach Tom Coughlin (who reportedly pulled out of contention for the job Thursday), the Eagles ultimately decided to give Pederson his first NFL head coaching job. He’ll replace Chip Kelly, who was fired ahead of th Eagles’ final game in a disappointing 7-9 season.
The 49ers announced on Thursday that Kelly will take over as their next head coach.
Pederson’s first order of business will be figuring out what to do with Philadelphia’s crowded backfield and how to remedy the rest of Kelly’s personnel decisions that ultimately did him in.
