Eagles running backs coach and assistant head coach Duce Staley has asked to be released from his contract, a source confirmed Sunday.
If Eagles ownership grants his request, the Bears plan to target him. They need to replace running backs coach Charles London after he left to become the Falcons’ quarterbacks coach last week. The Bears, who would have competition from other teams assembling their staffs, also could offer Staley an assistant head coach title.
Staley is familiar with Bears coach Matt Nagy and his offensive scheme. Former Eagles coach Doug Pederson comes from the same Andy Reid coaching tree. His offense was more similar to Nagy’s than any other in the league.
Nagy and Staley worked for the Eagles together as low-level assistants. Staley was an Eagles coaching intern in 2010 and a special-teams quality-control coach from 2011 to 2012 and has been the running backs coach since 2013. The Eagles added the title of assistant head coach three years ago. Nagy was an Eagles training-camp intern in 2008 and 2009, a coaching assistant in 2010 and an offensive quality-control coach from 2011 to 2012.
Staley was a running back for the Eagles for seven years and for the Steelers for three more.
He has been a popular assistant coach. When he interviewed for the team’s head-coaching job this month, Eagles players reportedly texted ownership with their support for Staley’s candidacy. On Thursday, though, the Eagles named Colts offensive coordinator Nick Sirianni as their new coach.
