Replacing Jeff Stoutland won’t be easy. Eagles’ Chris Kuper starts with player buy-in

PHILADELPHIA — The most noticeable change when observing the Philadelphia Eagles’ practice this spring has been the coach overseeing the offensive linemen. For 13 years, it was Jeff Stoutland’s group. Chris Kuper is now in charge. 

Once the tributes to Stoutland’s storied Eagles tenure subsided, attention turned to Kuper. He entered the unenviable position of replacing a coaching icon while taking on the enviable task of coaching one of the most talented offensive lines in the NFL — albeit with a starting group that has only known one coach throughout their careers.

“It’s kind of the outlier to have the same O-line coach for as long as Stout was here, and the appreciation that I think the league has for that man and what he’s done here is, everybody’s accounted for that and spoke to that,” Kuper said Monday in his first public comments since taking the Eagles’ job. “Replacing him, I just got to be myself. In general, being in those chairs before as a player, I’ve gone through a lot more coaching changes than these guys have, and the guys I just left in Minnesota have gone through a lot more than I even did. So, there’s an evolution to football where you have to be adaptable; you’re gonna have to adjust. There’s always going to be new terms with new coaches, new offenses. Then it’s the way about applying those things when you’re in there and on the field.”

Kuper, 43, comes to the Eagles after four seasons as the Minnesota Vikings’ offensive line coach. He might be best known for eight years as a guard for the Denver Broncos, including 79 starts. That history offered a different flavor to the Eagles’ offensive linemen, who are hearing a new voice for the first time in more than a decade. 

One additional selling point: Kuper coached (and played) in a version of the scheme the Eagles are installing under new offensive coordinator Sean Mannion. One reason Stoutland is no longer in Philadelphia is that the Eagles were introducing new running concepts and wanted a new run game coordinator. Kuper does not possess the run game coordinator title as Stoutland did, but his background with the concepts was a critical part of the decision to hire him.

“Chris is awesome. Chris has been a great addition to the team so far, bringing on new techniques,” said Eagles left tackle Jordan Mailata, who learned how to play football from Stoutland. “His experience and knowledge within the scheme is really translating from the classroom to the field right now, and we’re learning a bunch of stuff.”

Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio also offered a strong endorsement for Kuper, who was on Fangio’s staff in Denver. Fangio was only included late in coach Nick Sirianni’s hiring process. He said that he maintains “the utmost confidence in Kup that he’ll do a great job here, and I think the players will like and respect him.”

Kuper, who knew Mannion as a backup quarterback in Minnesota, was drawn to the job because he saw the investment the Eagles made in offensive linemen and their success in drafting and developing the position. It’s impossible to ignore the shadow that looms. Kuper was appropriately respectful while not sounding too deferential. This is his job now, and the job description is to prepare and develop the linemen — not try to meet a Stoutland standard.

“Players, if you can help them, they’re going to listen,” Kuper said. “If I can help the players, seeing the results on the field, I’m going to get the buyback, and I get the buy-in. So, my goal is that they trust me based on what I’ve taught them (and) what I’ve taught them is coming to fruition on the field.”

It helps that Kuper brings a proof of concept: His own career. Kuper was a 2006 fifth-round pick from North Dakota. By his second year, he earned a starting role in Mike Shanahan’s offense. By his fifth season, he signed a five-year contract worth more than $25 million that made him the second highest-paid offensive lineman in Broncos history at the time. 

The Eagles would have a hard time finding a replacement with the coaching bona fides of Stoutland. They at least found someone who can connect with the players on a level that comes with having once played in this scheme — and having since coached in this scheme.

“I’ve been in those huddles, I’ve had my hand in the dirt, I understand some of the sensations that these guys feel when they’re taking the wrong angle or the right angle or their hands not in the right spot or some of the adjustments that I’m going to ask them to make live on game day,” Kuper said. “It’s going to be about the trust… I have to earn the trust of the guys and this is the honeymoon period. We’re in the offseason. There’s no live bullets coming, so this is just part of the process that I think a lot of that process is going to be built throughout training camp.”

Mailata said that he feels “like a rookie again,” and Kuper emphasized that he must coach every player individually. Kuper noticed that the group has been receptive to his coaching. That’s been evident by frustration with an incorrect answer in a meeting or follow-up questions via text message for additional video. If he hears silence in the meeting room or doesn’t receive feedback, he’d be more skeptical. That hasn’t been the case.

It might seem like a challenge to teach experienced new linemen a new system. Kuper has seen it the other way around. They know how to communicate with each other. They know each other’s tendencies. Linemen must speak their own language. The players are fluent with each other.

“I think overall when you’re dealing with an experienced group, the transition is maybe a little bit easier,” Kuper said. “The fact that the five guys have played together. Continuity up front is huge, right? Just understanding how to fit combinations with each other. Sometimes there’s communication that needs to be had when there might be a new guy in there, or you have guys that played together for a long time and they have their own language. That’s the minutiae of O-line play.”

As long as the Eagles’ offensive linemen remain healthy, this will be the best group Kuper has coached. The Vikings did not have a Pro Bowler during Kuper’s time with the team. Lane Johnson, Landon Dickerson and Cam Jurgens have all made Pro Bowls, and Jordan Mailata was second-team All-Pro in 2024. 

The Vikings stint did not end well for Kuper, who was not retained after the season. When asked what he learned from his time there, Kuper did not want to offer too many specifics. He mentioned the need to cross-train players. Minnesota used 25 different starters last season. The Eagles dealt with their own injuries, although this group is more decorated. That’s why coaching this line is such a desirable gig if one can withstand the pressure cooker.

“Really good players make really good coaches, in my opinion,” Kuper said.

Those players might not seem like the traditional fit for this scheme considering the emphasis the Eagles have placed on size. Kuper countered that the players have evolved since he came into the NFL under Shanahan. 

When he was drafted, he was between 302 and 305 pounds. That made him the second biggest lineman. The biggest weighed 325. Four of the Eagles’ five starters have listed weights greater than 320 pounds. They have five linemen on the roster who weigh more than 330 pounds. 

“I’d be a shrimp in this room in terms of the weight that I was carrying right,” Kuper said. “They’ve all gotten bigger, they’ve all gotten stronger. They’re all a little bit more skilled.”

The offensive system has evolved, too. Each branch of the tree spawned new leaves. There will be a wide-zone running scheme. The angles will change. But the goal by the season is to make this Mannion’s offense — not Mike or Kyle Shanahan’s or Sean McVay’s or Matt LaFleur’s. 

Similarly, it will be Kuper’s offensive line — not Stoutland’s — even if all the returning players have only known one coach. 

“That’s my goal, is to get them to understand the system, the new verbiage, and then just coming from a new voice in a different way,” Kuper said. “I think everyone’s going to have to adjust, and yes, am I adjusting? Of course I am, because that’s how I believe you teach, is you adjust to your players.”