Reports: Eagles assistant Duce Staley joins Lions

PHILADELPHIA — Eagles assistant head coach/running backs coach Duce Staley is joining the Lions in the same capacity, according to multiple reports.

Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports first reported Staley’s departure to Detroit.

“Longtime Eagles assistant coach Duce Staley will join Dan Campbell’s staff,” La Canfora tweeted.

Tom Pelissero of NFL Media added Staley’s title to the reporting.

“Duce Staley is joining the #Lions’ coaching staff as assistant head coach/running backs, per source,” Pelissero tweeted.

Duce Staley is joining the #Lions’ coaching staff as assistant head coach/running backs, per source.

— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) January 25, 2021

Staley, 45, reportedly asked out of his contract with the Eagles on Sunday.

On the Eagles’ coaching staff since 2011, Staley reportedly interviewed for the coaching job that went to Nick Sirianni. Sirianni’s hiring was officially announced Sunday morning. Staley also interviewed for the coaching job in 2016 and was passed over for the offensive coordinator job in 2018 and 2020.

Staley, a running back with the Pittsburgh Steelers from 2004-06, was respected in the Eagles’ locker room, and a number of current and former Eagles publicly expressed their support for Staley to get the job after coach Doug Pederson was fired Jan. 11.

Staley heads to Detroit where he’ll join new Lions coach Dan Campbell. In 2020, the Lions running back group featured future Hall of Famer Adrian Peterson, Philly native D’Andre Swift and third-year pro Kerryon Johnson.

Staley has been on the Eagles coaching staff since 2011 when Andy Reid hired him as a special teams quality control coach. Staley became the running backs coach in 2013 when Chip Kelly was hired, and Pederson kept him on in that capacity when he was hired in 2016. Staley added assistant head coach to his title in 2018, and he served as the acting head coach in August when Pederson missed 10 days after he tested positive for the coronavirus.

The Eagles drafted Staley out of South Carolina in the third round of the 1997 NFL Draft. He spent seven seasons with the team and rushed for 4,807 yards and 22 touchdowns for the Eagles.