Colts' Saturday knows Mudd will improve Birds' O-line

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Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Posted: 10:15 p.m.

By Reuben Frank
CSNPhilly.com

How many sacks did the Eagles give up last year? Jeff Saturday asked Howard Mudd on the phone a few days after Mudd accepted Andy Reids offer to coach the Eagles offensive linemen.

About 50, Mudd replied.

Saturday cracked up.

I just started laughing, the five-time Pro Bowl center said. Because the year before Howard came to the Colts, it was a couple years before I got here, we gave up like 60 sacks (actually 62). And then his first year in Indianapolis, we gave up about 20 (22). I fully expect the same thing to happen with the Eagles this year.

Hell make an immediate impact on that line. He specializes in solving problems. Thats what he likes to do. Face a challenge and find a way to solve it. I guarantee you one thingthe Eagles wont give 50 sacks next year.

Saturday spent 12 years with Mudd, which means hes spent more time with the legendary 68-year-old offensive line fixer-upper than anybody Mudd has ever coached.

Working under Mudd, Saturday went from an undrafted street free agent who couldnt even get into a training camp his first year out of North Carolina to a perennial Pro Bowl offensive lineman and two-time first-team All-Pro. In Colts franchise history, only six playersincluding Johnny Unitas, Peyton Manning and Marvin Harrisonhave been picked to more Pro Bowls.

Ask Saturday how it happened and hell tell you it was all Howard Mudd.

After I got cut by the Ravens (in the spring of 1998), I went to work for an electrical supply company down in Raleigh, N.C., he said by phone from Indianapolis, which hes made his year-round home.

I was out of the league that first year and nobody even gave me a chance to play. The Colts signed me that January (of 1999), and when Howard first met me, I dont think he even realized I was an offensive lineman. He thought I was a long snapper. I was just a guy off the street. But once we got out on the practice field, it didnt matter. He treated me like a first-round draft pick. His thing is that if you put in the work, he doesnt care if youre a rookie or veteran, a first-round pick or an undrafted guy. Everybodys equal to him.

Mudd was a pretty good player himself during an NFL career cut short by a neck injury.

He went to three Pro Bowls in seven seasons as an offensive lineman with the 49ers and Bears before getting into coaching. Mudd spent a couple years coaching at Cal before starting his remarkable 36-year NFL coaching career in 1974 on Tommy Prothros Chargers staff.

After stints with the 49ers, Seahawks, Browns and Chiefs, Mudd joined Jim Mora Sr. in Indianapolis in 1998 and stayed there for 12 years before retiring after the 2009 season. During Mudds 12 years in Indianapolis, the Colts averaged 11 wins, went to the playoffs 10 times, won a Super Bowl and went to another, and were ranked in the top three in the NFL in scoring eight times.

Earlier this month, Reid lured Mudd out of retirement and named him offensive line coach, replacing Juan Castillowho he promoted to defensive coordinator.

Honestly? I wasnt surprised when he told me he was going back to coaching, Saturday said. Football is one of the most addictive things there is. Man, it doesnt get any better than going out there on a Sunday afternoon with a group of men and fighting for a single goal and knowing how important it is for you to take care of your small responsibility. Its ingrained in us and its what we love to do.

So I think when Andy called him, you know, he just saw it as a great opportunity. He and coach (Jim) Washburn (new Eagles defensive line coach) are good friends and have known each other a long time, and that definitely helped. And he has a great relationship with Andy Reid. And he loves a new challenge. So it all made for a perfect scenario for him to come back.

Hes 68, but hell go in 100 percent. He doesnt do anything halfway. Thats not the way he does things.

Mudd takes over an Eagles line that last year allowed more sacks than any Eagles team had given up in 12 years. The Eagles ranked 29th in the NFL in sacks allowed and had serious issues protecting Michael Vick the second half of the season and in the playoffs.

The Colts, conversely, allowed 227 sacks in Mudds 12 seasonsthats fewer than 20 per year during than span. No other team was within 100 of that from 1998 through 2009the Titans allowed the second-fewest (337) during those 12 seasons, and the Eagles gave up 487more than twice as many as the Colts.

Howard is very demanding and will coach you very hard, Saturday said. Hell be disappointed with anybody that doesnt play up to their potential. He wont hesitate to bench anybodywhether its a high draft pick, whoeverif he feels like he isnt playing the way hes capable of. Hell give everybody a chance and play the best five guys, whether or not they were a starter the year before or a Pro Bowl guy.

Saturday made his first Pro Bowl team in 2005his seventh NFL seasonbut he said Mudd didnt let up on him even though he was now a Pro Bowl center.

If anything, he was even harder on Saturday.

I remember coming back from the Pro Bowl and youre feeling pretty good about it, and he was like, OK, you need to work on blocking back on the trap, lets get to work, and stuff like that, he said. His attention to detail is unbelievable. He knows exactly what every guy needs to work on, and hes constantly finding something you can be better at. Hes always on you to become a better player, no matter how many Pro Bowls youve been to. I like that style.

Hell cuss you like a dog and make you feel small, but hell find a way to make you a better player than you even thought you could be, and when you do well, hell be right there celebrating with you because you got to the level he always knew you could get to.

The Eagles do have the makings of a decent offensive line, although the right side certainly needs to be reworked.

Left tackle Jason Peters played very well after getting his knee scoped midway through the season and was selected to his second straight Pro Bowl team. Left guard Todd Herremans had another strong year. If Jamaal Jackson can return at center after his latest injuryand he says hell be 100 percent by minicamps (if there are minicamps)he can return to center and Mike McGlynn can move from center to right guard. Plug in a first-round pick at right tackleGabe Carimi of Wisconsin or perhaps Derek Sherrod of Mississippi Stateand Mudd will have a nice group to work with.

One thing Ill tell you about Howards practiceseverybody in the stadium and anywhere near the field will hear Howard Mudd, Saturday said. His voice is distinctive, and theres going to be some profanity. Hell be driving his guys every minute to be the best they can be. One thing he cant tolerate is a guy whos not putting in the time or the effort.

I know my career would never have been anything like the way its been if it hadnt been for him. Hell work em hard, and rest assured, the Eagles will have a better offensive line next year because of Howard.

E-mail Reuben Frank at rfrank@comcastsportsnet.com

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