Philadelphia Eagles officially confirm Jim Schwartz as defensive coordinator

Bringing in a defensive mind like Schwartz will take a lot of weight off of Doug Pederson, especially as a first-year head coach. He’ll also get a chance to coach linebacker Kiko Alonso, who missed Schwartz’s lone season with the Bills after tearing his ACL, and his arrival could increase the chances that the Eagles hold onto impending free agent Vinny Curry as an option at the point of attack.

Schwartz was a defensive coordinator for eight years with the Titans and in 2014 with the Bills. There were rumors that Schwartz declined an opportunity to become the defensive coordinator for the Miami Dolphins this past season.

Schwartz complied a 29-51 record in four seasons with the Lions, going 0-1 in the postseason, from 2009 to 2013.

Schwartz, who lives in Nashville, would have liked to join the Titans, a source told ESPN’s Paul Kuharsky, but Dick LeBeau is in line to return to head coach Mike Mularkey’s staff. Schwartz arrived in Philadelphia on Monday and was reportedly set to interview with the team.

The Cleveland Browns and the Jacksonville Jaguars apparently were also interested in Schwartz to fill their defensive coordinator openings. Seldom can assistants be found with the 49-year-old’s level of experience and relative stability in a results-driven business.

Jim Schwartz has employed a 4-3 defense at every stop during his National Football League coaching career, which would require his new defense to switch from the 3-4 scheme Davis had implemented since his hire. This means the defensive ends are split out wider than is normally seen, with the defensive tackles lined up on the guards’ outside shoulder. Pederson had served as the offensive coordinator for the Kansas City Chiefs under former Eagles coach Andy Reid. Special teams coordinator Dave Fipp and offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland were retained from the staff left over from Chip Kelly’s tenure.