While the Eagles prep for their home playoff game against San Francisco next weekend, Monday saw a bunch of arrivals and departures for pro coaches with ties to Philadelphia.
The most prominent arrival was Don Mattingly, who joined the Phillies as the veteran bench coach the team had been searching for, they announced Monday morning
The move wasn’t a surprise. At the winter meetings last month, president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said there was “mutual interest” between the team and Mattingly. But it was welcome news, as Mattingly has a four-decade history of excellence, from being a feared slugger for the Yankees who later became an astute manager and coach. The 64-year-old was on the Yankees’ coaching staff at the same time as Phillies manager Rob Thomson and hitting coach Kevin Long.
“I think it’d be awesome,” Thomson said last month when asked about the possibility of Mattingly joining the Phils. “I think it’s a perfect fit for a ballclub. Just his intelligence and presence and experience. It would be a really good fit.”
Lastly, Mattingly’s son Preston is the Phillies’ general manager.
The departures were from the NFL, where two head coaches with Philly ties were fired.
- Jonathan Gannon was dumped by the Arizona Cardinals after a three-year stint that ended with a 15-36 record. The Cards had been a trendy pick to turn things around this year, but they did not, going 3-14. Gannon had been the defensive coordinator for the Eagles when they reached the Super Bowl in 2023, though he was not seen as a strong performer — until the “D” struggled mightily the season after he left.
- Kevin Stefanski, a Philly suburbs native who played football at St. Joe’s Prep and Penn before beginning a rapid rise in the NFL, was axed by the Cleveland Browns after six seasons. His 45-56 record over that time isn’t bad for Cleveland, and he was named the league’s coach of the year twice. The team went 5-12 this season, which matched expectations. He is just 43 years old and it’s expected that many teams with head-coaching openings will give him a look. Could he coach the Giants next season? Maybe.
