The Philadelphia Eagles‘ defense of their Super Bowl LIX victory did not go as planned, as they bowed out of the postseason in the wild-card round after suffering a 23-19 defeat at the hands of the San Francisco 49ers. Changes are on the way as the offseason rolls around, but it sounds like one highly coveted assistant coach will be sticking around.
Shortly after Philly’s season-ending loss, it announced that it would be moving on from Kevin Patullo as its offensive coordinator. Another guy who some folks believed could be on the move was special teams coordinator Michael Clay, as he was drawing interest for a handful of different roles across the league. However, the Eagles managed to find a way to ensure Clay will be staying in town.
Eagles, Michael Clay Agree to New Contract
One of the more coveted ST coaches around, Clay drew significant interest around the league. But he elected to remain home.
The status of much of the Eagles’ coaching staff has come under scrutiny in the wake of the team’s disappointing 2025 campaign. Patullo has already lost his job as offensive coordinator, and head coach Nick Sirianni has received some flak for Philadelphia’s struggles down the stretch of the season. Clay, on the other hand, has received attention for different reasons.
After flaming out quickly in the NFL as a player, Clay quickly transitioned to coaching. He initially got his start with the Eagles, spending two seasons with them before latching on with the Niners. Clay would continue to rise up the ranks with San Fran before he returned to Philadelphia in 2021, where he has been working as its special teams coordinator ever since.
Over the years, Clay’s work with the Eagles has quickly earned him some attention in circles across the league. It seemed like there was a decent chance that Clay could leave Philly to take on a bigger role this offseason, but instead, the two sides hammered out a new contract that will keep him in town for the foreseeable future.
“The Eagles and special teams coach Michael Clay have agreed to terms on a new deal for him to return to Philly, per me and Mike Garafolo,” Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported. “One of the more coveted ST coaches around, Clay drew significant interest around the league. But he elected to remain home.”
Eagles Still Have a Lot of Work to Do this Offseason
GettyHead coach Nick Sirianni of the Philadelphia Eagles speaks with GM Howie Roseman.
Make no mistake, keeping Clay in town is a win for the Eagles, but this is only the start of their offseason work. Philadelphia must move quickly to find a new offensive coordinator to replace Patullo, and then, it has to begin finding ways to upgrade its roster after some serious holes popped up down the stretch of the season.
Philly proved last year that it is capable of winning a Super Bowl with its current core group of stars, but the pieces didn’t line up correctly this time around. If everything goes according to plan this offseason, though, expect the Eagles to enter the 2026 campaign as one of the top teams in the league once again.
Eagles Lock Up Assistant Coach Who Was Drawing Interest Around the NFL