Hiring young coaches has been the theme for the Eagles this offseason.
It was recently reported that Florida Gators offensive coordinator Brian Johnson will join Nick Sirianni’s staff in Philly as the quarterbacks coach. For obvious reasons, this may be the most important hire of the entire offseason for the Birds.
Johnson, 33, has emerged as one of the most coveted college assistants over the past year. Just this offseason he’s interviewed for jobs with South Carolina and Boise State.
After an illustrious collegiate playing career at Utah, where Johnson went 26-7 as the starting quarterback, including an undefeated 13-0 season in 2008, Johnson immediately went into coaching. He began his coaching career where his playing career ended as Utah’s quarterbacks coach.
He then went onto be the quarterbacks coach at Mississippi State, where he guided Dak Prescott to one of the best seasons in Mississippi State history. He joined Florida’s staff in 2018 as the quarterbacks coach, and during this past season offensive coordinator was added to his job description. Johnson developed Florida quarterback Kyle Trask into one of the best collegiate quarterback in the nation last year, as he threw 43 touchdowns to just eight interceptions while completing nearly 69% of his passes.
Johnson’s work is cut out for him in Philly. He’ll be tasked with resurrecting Carson Wentz’s career, while also developing second year quarterback Jalen Hurts into a solid backup — or potentially into a starter if Wentz isn’t able to turn things around.
From his playing days to his coaching career, Johnson obviously knows what it takes to be an exceptional quarterback. The only drawback, he’s never played or coached in the NFL, which is a completely different beast than the NCAA. But, there are similarities in coaching quarterbacks at both levels, and Johnson’s ability to get the most out of his players in college may mean he can do the same in the NFL.
Only time will tell, as is the case with nearly every coach the Eagles have brought in thus far.