Who’ll be the Eagles’ next defensive coordinator? Here are 7 candidates to watch.

For the second time in the last 12 months, the Eagles are looking for a new defensive coordinator.

Last year’s search resulted in Sean Desai’s short-lived appointment running the Eagles defense, replacing Jonathan Gannon with shaky results. Desai’s tenure was all but finished when Eagles coach Nick Sirianni stripped him of play-calling duties two-thirds into the season, but the decision to put Matt Patricia at the helm ultimately backfired.

» READ MORE: Eagles fire defensive coordinator Sean Desai

Who might the Eagles consider this time around?

They plan to interview former Eagles assistants Ron Rivera and Mike Caldwell for their vacant defensive coordinator position, according to an ESPN report.

The Athletic reported former Giants defensive coordinator Wink Martindale and former Atlanta Falcons DC Ryan Nielsen were also contacted by the Eagles for an interview, but Nielsen was hired by the Jacksonville Jaguars on Monday, according to ESPN.

Here are seven candidates who make sense:

Wink Martindale

Both Eagles fans and players should be all too familiar with Martindale after the last few years.

The 60-year-old is one of the top names available after he and the Giants “mutually agreed to part ways” earlier this month, and according to The Athletic, the Eagles have reached out to him. Martindale has been an NFL assistant since 2004, spending the majority of his time with the Baltimore Ravens.

Martindale would be quite a departure from the defensive approach the Eagles have utilized during Sirianni’s tenure. He called blitzes on 46% of the Giants’ defensive plays this season, which was more than double the percentage the Eagles sent extra rushers in the regular season. His blitz package could be described as unpredictable, exotic, or even chaotic.

This may not completely align with Sirianni’s philosophy of limiting explosive plays with off coverages and two deep safeties, but Martindale got decent production out of a Giants defense without many household names. The Giants ranked 21st in defense-adjusted value over average (which measures efficiency with quality of opponent factored in), and tied for first in takeaways with Baltimore in 2023.

Based on his four years as the Ravens’ defensive coordinator from 2018-21, it’s safe to say Martindale has the upside to run a top-five defensive unit with the right personnel. His Ravens teams ranked No. 1 in either yards or points allowed in each of his first three years and finished in the top 10 in DVOA in the first three years as well.

While Martindale doesn’t fit the mold Sirianni has gone for in the past, his experience in the league would make him an ideal “head coach of the defense,” capable of taking on the brunt of responsibility on that side of the ball.

Ron Rivera

Rivera, a former linebacker who played nine seasons with the Chicago Bears, spent five years early in his career as the Eagles’ linebacker coach on Andy Reid’s staff (1999-2003). Rivera still has ties in the Eagles organization, most notably with team owner Jeffrey Lurie.

“He’s a family member of ours,” Lurie said in 2020. “[Rivera’s wife, Stephanie] and my wife play golf together, and Ron is somebody I really respect … he’s a high-quality person in every sense of the word.”

Rivera spent the last 13 seasons as a head coach, first with the Carolina Panthers and more recently with the Washington Commanders. The 62-year-old went 76-63-1 with the Panthers and 26-40-1 with Washington before getting fired earlier this month.

Rivera was last a defensive coordinator with the San Diego Chargers from 2008-10. His Chargers defenses ranked top-five in points allowed each of his three seasons running the unit. During his tenure as a head coach, his defenses have ranked in the top 10 in scoring four times.

Rivera has showcased some schematic flexibility based on the personnel he has had over the course of his career. It’s difficult to pin down his specific schematic preferences because of his long stretch as a head coach, but Rivera has a history of preferring aggressive four-man fronts and zone coverage, particularly quarters coverage with two deep safeties.

If the organization is searching for someone with both head-coaching experience and a history of leading elite defenses, Rivera would fit the bill.

Leslie Frazier

Frazier has a long track record as a successful defensive coordinator and is available after taking a year away from coaching in 2023.

He has 14 years experience as a defensive coordinator in the NFL with the Buffalo Bills, Minnesota Vikings, Cincinnati Bengals, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He also took over as the Vikings’ head coach in 2010 and spent the next three seasons at the helm, going 21-32-1 during that span. Frazier, a five-year NFL veteran who played for the 1985 Bears, spent four years as the Eagles’ defensive backs coach from 1999-2002.

The 64-year-old most recently spent six seasons as the Bills’ defensive coordinator and got impressive results with a talented group. His teams ranked No. 1 in points allowed two straight years before he stepped down, and ranked in the top 10 for four consecutive seasons as well.

Frazier’s extensive experience in the league suggests his scheme has morphed significantly during his career. He ran a modern, analytically influenced defense in Buffalo with a good amount of two-high safeties, zone coverages, and light boxes.

It’s fair to point out that the Bills’ defense still finished fourth in points allowed this season without an official defensive coordinator and head coach Sean McDermott calling plays. Frazier stepped away from coaching last January with the plan to return in 2024 and told Sports Illustrated last March that he was “recharged.” It’s worth noting that Frazier is getting some head-coaching interest, but he could view the Eagles job as an opportunity to run one side of the ball if that interest doesn’t materialize.

Mike Caldwell

Caldwell, 52, is another former NFL linebacker who spent part of his 11-year career with the Eagles (1998-2001). He’s coming off two years as defensive coordinator for the Jaguars, but was fired earlier this month. This season, Jacksonville’s defense ranked 10th in DVOA. The Jags ranked 23rd in DVOA in Caldwell’s first year and have been middle-of-the-road in yards allowed in each of the last two seasons.

Before his time with the Jaguars, Caldwell was an assistant coach with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Todd Bowles’ staff and was with Bowles with the New York Jets before that. He was part of the 2021 Buccaneers defensive staff that stymied the Eagles offense in the wild-card round of the 2021-22 season.

Similar to Bowles, Caldwell has a track record of running an aggressive defense that flips between man coverage and zone, and blitzes above the league average. The Jaguars ranked ninth in blitz rate this season and finished fourth in pressure rate.

Al Harris

The 49-year-old Harris is another former player who spent time with the Eagles during his career, somewhat more successfully than Nielsen. Although he was drafted by the Buccaneers, the 14-year defensive back made his NFL debut in 1998 with the Eagles and played five seasons with them.

He has been the Dallas Cowboys’ defensive backs coach the last four seasons. Before that, he was an assistant for the Kansas City Chiefs from 2013-18.

The Cowboys assistant has a track record of developing young cornerbacks and getting quality play in the secondary even with moving parts. He developed Trevon Diggs into an All-Pro cornerback with 11 interceptions in 2021. When Diggs went down with a torn ACL early this season, backup cornerback DaRon Bland earned All-Pro honors with nine interceptions in his place. Veteran corner Stephon Gilmore had 13 pass breakups this season as well, the most he has recorded since 2019 when he was still considered one of the best defensive backs in the NFL.

Harris’ ability to get a secondary playing fast and aggressive has led to plenty of takeaways for the Cowboys and aligns nicely with Sirianni’s priorities, which is a plus. He doesn’t have experience as a coordinator but could be an upside play as a secondary specialist.

Jesse Minter

Especially if Michigan’s staff is about to get raided with Jim Harbaugh up for NFL gigs, Minter makes plenty of sense as an ascending defensive coach with experience at both the NFL and collegiate level.

Minter, 40, spent four years as an assistant coach for the Ravens before leaving Baltimore head coach John Harbaugh for his brother’s staff at Michigan in 2022. He has been the defensive coordinator in Ann Arbor the last two seasons and his group held opponents to 10.3 points per game, which ranked No. 1 in the country.

The Eagles interviewed Minter last offseason and his stock has only risen since then. If Jim Harbaugh gets an NFL coaching job, Minter may be his top choice at his new stop. If not, Minter has appeal as someone with experience at both levels and a track record of successfully dealing with college offenses, which are progressively gaining more influence in the modern NFL.

If the Eagles aren’t targeting the Vic Fangio tree anymore, finding someone familiar with the next crop of ideas forming in college offenses and making their way to the NFL makes sense.

Glenn Schumann

The Eagles already employ half of Georgia’s 2021-22 defense, why not get the coordinator, too?

Schumann, 33, is another college coach who interviewed with the Eagles last offseason. He already has coached Jalen Carter, Jordan Davis, Nolan Smith, Nakobe Dean, and Kelee Ringo during their shared time with the Bulldogs and has the same experience as Minter going against the offensive innovation and scheme diversity the college game presents.

There are obvious questions. Schumann doesn’t have any NFL coaching experience and any jump to the next level wouldn’t afford him the same luxuries he has had running Georgia’s deep, talented defense. Still, if the Eagles came away impressed with Schumann from last year’s interview, he certainly hasn’t done anything in the last year to dissuade them from bringing him back into the race.