The Philadelphia Eagles and head coach Chip Kelly may have finally found their man.
Kelly, according to NBC Sports' ProFootballTalk, is expected to promote assistant director of pro personnel Ed Marynowitz to the general manager position, with an announcement coming "as soon as Thursday."
Early Tuesday, Geoff Mosher of CSN Philly revealed that at the Senior Bowl, insider buzz had focused on Marynowitz and Miami Dolphins scouting director Chris Grier as the two names at the top of the list.
Marynowitz is the only in-house candidate the Eagles were considering, and it seems he now has the job.
"Marynowitz has worked in the Eagles' scouting department since the Andy Reid administration and was promoted to his current post six months into Kelly's first season with the club," writes Mosher. "Sources have said Kelly is fond of Marynowitz and that the two have an excellent working relationship. Marynowitz, 30, is held in high esteem around the league and several have said he has general manager potential given his widespread contacts and stellar reputation."
As Mosher notes, there is concern within the Eagles organization and around the league that his youth and "lack of NFL front office experience" could hinder him initially. Prior to joining the Eagles, Marynowitz spent only a single season working for the Dolphins as a scouting assistant under Bill Parcells and Jeff Ireland.
It was reported Wednesday that the Eagles, who had been struggling to find candidates interested in the job or whose teams would allow them to interview their current staffers for the position, had again been spurned by a couple of potential applicants.
PFT reported that both Green Bay Packers director of college scouting, Brian Gutenkunst and Baltimore Ravens director of college scouting, Joe Hortiz, joined the long line of candidates to either decline the opportunity to interview or were denied by their respective teams.
Uncertainty regarding the nature of the position - it does not include final say over the roster or the draft - and the current Philadelphia front office structure - deposed GM Howie Roseman is still in the building - had caused a number of potentially interested parties to balk.
