It seems the Philadelphia Eagles will lose offensive coordinator Kellen Moore shortly after capturing their second Super Bowl championship. Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie said Sunday night after his team’s victory that he expects Moore to become the next Saints head coach.
“Unfortunately, we’re gonna have to wish him the very best with New Orleans,” Lurie said when speaking about Moore to Jori Epstein of Yahoo Sports. “Very smart coach who was able to adapt our offense week to week (as) needed to win games.”
Moore, fresh off a 40-22 win over the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX, would become the 19th head coach in Saints history. He would replace Dennis Allen, who the Saints fired on Nov. 3.
In his first head-coaching position of his career, Moore would join a Saints team that is coming off a 5-12 season, its worst finish since going 3-13 in 2005.
The Saints kicked off this season on a red-hot tear, scoring 91 points in their first two games before quickly cooling off. New Orleans ranked 31st in scoring from Weeks 3 to 18. Injuries played a significant factor in that offensive slide.
Quarterback Derek Carr suffered abdomen and hand injuries and missed eight starts, while key receivers Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed missed half the season with injuries. Nine different offensive linemen and three different quarterbacks started throughout the season.
Moore, 36, has spent six seasons as an offensive coordinator for the Eagles (2024), Los Angeles Chargers (2023) and Dallas Cowboys (2019-22). A former undrafted left-handed quarterback out of Boise State, Moore played six seasons in the NFL, including three with the Detroit Lions (2012-14) and three with the Cowboys (2015-17). He played in three career games (two starts) all in 2016, throwing for 779 yards, four touchdowns and six interceptions.
Following his retirement as a player in 2018, Moore joined Dallas’ staff as quarterbacks coach, replacing long-time staffer Wade Wilson, who held the role for 20 combined seasons.
The Cowboys elevated Moore to offensive coordinator the next season and he remained in it following the hiring of Mike McCarthy as coach in 2020. During Moore’s four seasons at the helm, the Cowboys offense ranked No. 1 in the NFL in total yardage twice (2019, 2021) and top-six in average points scored three times. Moore’s 2021 team set franchise records in Dallas for points scored (530) and total yards gained (6,919).
During quarterback Dak Prescott’s injury-shortened 2020 season, Moore’s system resulted in a serviceable showing by backup Andy Dalton, who went 4-5 in nine starts with a 14-to-8 touchdown to interception ratio. It was a similar story to open up the 2022 season when backup Cooper Rush led the Cowboys to a 4-1 start while only committing four turnovers.
Moore took his second offensive coordinator job in 2023 under Chargers coach Brandon Staley in what turned out to be Moore’s only season with the club after a 5-12 finish. After L.A. named Jim Harbaugh as coach last February, Moore departed for Philadelphia and his third offensive coordinator role.
This season, the 14-3 Eagles finished No. 7 in average points scored and offensive expected points added (EPA) per play. Under Moore, Philadelphia set a franchise record for total rushing yards at 3,048 as Saquon Barkley became only the ninth running back in NFL history to eclipse the 2,000-yard rushing mark.
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A.J. Brown also managed his third consecutive 1,000-yard receiving season with Philadelphia despite his lowest target share since his rookie season in 2019, and Hurts, who missed the final two games of the regular season, still accounted for 32 total touchdowns while setting a career-high 68.7 percent completion percentage.
Moore has a habit of elevating running backs. Moore’s offense helped the Cowboys’ Tony Pollard post his best season by yards per rushing attempt (5.5) in 2021 and pushed him to his first 1,000-yard season in 2022. In Los Angeles, Moore helped Austin Ekeler reach his third-straight season with 1,000 yards from scrimmage and Joshua Kelley improved to a career-high 405 yards.
With the Saints, Moore has the chance to work with running back Alvin Kamara, who ended his season with a career-high 950 rushing yards and his most targets in the passing game (89) since 2020.
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(Photo: Mitchell Leff / Getty Images)
