Don Martindale. Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports

Why not Wink Martindale as next Eagles DC?

By Bruce Ewing | Last updated 1/17/24

Philadelphia’s Nick Sirianni has built a reputation as a “player’s coach” but after a disastrous end to the 2023 season, he could use a strong personality on the staff. Why not Don “Wink” Martindale, former defensive coordinator of the division rival Giants?

After giving up the third-most points per game (25.2) in the regular season, the Eagles need all the help they can get on defense. According to NFL.com’s Nick Shook, Eagles defenders gave up 219 yards after the catch against Tampa Bay in the wild-card round with 79 of those yards coming over expected.

Martindale could fix that. With 19 years of NFL coaching experience, there’s not much he hasn’t seen. Before being promoted to defensive coordinator in 2013, he was a linebackers coach for the Super Bowl champion Ravens and got the most out of a suspect Giants roster for the past two seasons as New York’s DC.

Thanks to Martindale’s aggressive, blitzing style, New York forced 50 turnovers over the past two seasons and finished with the fourth-most quarterback hits in 2022. Both are great numbers but unfortunately, Martindale's aggressive style often goes beyond the field of play.

From @NFLTotalAccess: Wink Martindale and the #Giants have finally split and will go their own separate ways. pic.twitter.com/HxMZK9QftW
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 11, 2024

According to reports , the 60-year-old coordinator had a tempestuous relationship with Giants head coach Brian Daboll and cursed out his boss when the team fired two of his assistants. The two have since decided to part ways, but that sort of behavior won’t sit well with some NFL teams, especially the Philadelphia Eagles.

In 2013, team owner Jeffrey Lurie hired Oregon’s Chip Kelly to replace Andy Reid as head coach. On the field, he got off to a great start with a 10-6 record, but behind the scenes, Kelly’s gruff personality started to rub people the wrong way.

To everyone’s surprise, Lurie removed Kelly with one game to go in the 2015 season. Some say the team’s 6-9 record got him fired but according to CBS Sports' Jason La Canfora, Lurie was livid at Kelly’s refusal to attend the team’s holiday party that year.

Since then, the Eagles have steered toward more agreeable coaches like Doug Pederson and Nick Sirianni. So while Martindale could be just what the team needs to get its defense back on track, he’s probably the last guy they’d ever consider.

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