AP source: Eagles fire Johnson as OC.
The Philadelphia Eagles have fired offensive coordinator Brian Johnson, according to a source who spoke with The Associated Press on Tuesday.
The individual spoke with the Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because the team has not publicized the change.
Johnson replaces former defensive coordinator Sean Desai as coach Nick Sirianni reshapes his staff following a season-ending collapse. The Eagles started 10-1, finished 11-6, and lost 32-9 to Tampa Bay in the wild-card game.
Johnson joined the Eagles as quarterbacks coach in 2021 and was promoted to offensive coordinator after Shane Steichen resigned to become the head coach in Indianapolis. This month, he interviewed for the head coaching positions with the Atlanta Falcons and the Tennessee Titans.
Jalen Hurts was a nominee for AP NFL MVP and Offensive Player of the Year in 2022 when Johnson was an assistant, and the Eagles made it to the Super Bowl. However, with Johnson calling the plays, Hurts has regressed this season.
Vinovich will lead officiating crew at the Super Bowl
NEW YORK— Bill Vinovich, a veteran referee, will command the officiating crew for next month’s Super Bowl in Las Vegas.
The NFL confirmed on Tuesday that Vinovich will work his third Super Bowl, with umpire Terry Killens, down judge Patrick Holt, line judge Mark Perlman, field judge Tom Hill, side judge Allen Baynes, back judge Brad Freeman, and replay official Mike Chase.
Killens will be the first individual to play in and officiate the Super Bowl. Killens made one special-teams tackle for the Tennessee Titans against the St. Louis Rams on January 30, 2000.
The league selects officials on merit for the Super Bowl, thus Vinovich is not working.
The league later acknowledged the blown non-call and modified the rules for one season, allowing clubs to argue pass-interference penalties.
Chiefs-Bills has a record viewership.
Los Angeles— Last weekend’s four NFL divisional round playoff games drew an average of 40.0 million viewers across broadcast and digital platforms, the greatest number on record since 1988.
The audience average is up 7% from last year and 5% from two years ago.
According to Nielsen, Sunday night’s game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Buffalo Bills on CBS averaged a divisional round record 50.39 million viewers. The previous record was 48.52 million for the Jan. 15, 2017, game between the Dallas Cowboys and Green Bay Packers on Fox.
It was the highest-rated program on any network since last year’s Super Bowl. At one point in the fourth quarter, the Chiefs’ 27-24 win was worth 56.25 million.
