Childress deserves credit��and a shot at a head coaching job

Lost in the discussion about the Eagles' tremendous offense--buried deep beneath Donovan McNabb, Terrell Owens, Brian Westbrook, a bunch of other players and Andy Reid--is Brad Childress. He's the Eagles' offensive coordinator, yet he rarely gets a bit of credit for the success of his unit.

That's because he doesn't call plays on game day. Reid, like eight other head coaches in the league--Bill Parcells, Mike Holmgren, Steve Mariucci, Mike Sherman, Mike Martz, Jon Gruden, Norv Turner and Joe Gibbs--handles that job. As a result, Childress gets overlooked.

Which isn't right. Childress is heavily involved in the preparation of the weekly game plan. When the players come in Wednesday for the installation of the offense that week, he's the guy who presents it to them. That's an enormous responsibility. And he conducts all of the offensive practices. Childress does everything any NFL offensive coordinator does until game day, and even then, he consults with Reid throughout the game and actually does call some of the plays.

That's not good enough for some people. They say, "Yeah, but he doesn't call all the plays." To which I have a simple two-word answer: Andy Reid.

Before Reid went to Philadelphia, he coached tight ends and then quarterbacks for the Packers under Holmgren. You think he called plays there? Heck, no. He was as anonymous then as Childress is now. But the Eagles saw enough potential in Reid to hire him in 1999, and that move is looking pretty smart. Three weeks ago, the Eagles clinched their fourth straight division title and fifth consecutive playoff appearance.

Here's another two-word response: Mike Sherman. He didn't call plays as the offensive coordinator under Holmgren in Seattle, but he's doing fine as head coach of the Packers, whose offense took off earlier this year when Sherman started calling plays.

So this business about Childress not calling plays is nonsense. He is a very bright offensive mind, has the respect of the people around him--Reid and Eagles players gush over him--and has spent six years contributing to an organization I consider one of the league's two best, along with New England. He has helped create an elite offense, and he deserves recognition for that.

Actually, he deserves more than that. He deserves a shot. When teams are interviewing candidates for head coaching jobs this off-season, Childress should be among them. In fact, I'll be disappointed if he doesn't get an offer. Childress is ready, and he'd be a great hire.

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