PHILADELPHIA -- Brian Johnson kept his long-standing relationship with quarterback Jalen Hurts under wraps.
He had no prior history with newly minted Philadelphia Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni or then-offensive coordinator Shane Steichen before interviewing for the quarterbacks coaching job in January 2021. The first time the three met was when they walked into the NovaCare practice facility together that day.
They ended up talking ball for eight hours and not once did Johnson mention that he had known Hurts -- the Eagles' second-round pick in 2020 -- since he was in preschool; that Johnson was coached by Hurts' father, Averion, as a high school quarterback, and was close with the entire family; that he recruited Hurts to join him at Mississippi State, and later the University of Florida; and that he was one of the first to see in Jalen what others might have missed.