Philadelphia Eagles offensive quality control coach Eric Dickerson has a new appreciation for how hard it is to reach the Super Bowl as the team prepares for its second appearance in the championship game over the last three seasons.

In 2023, the last time the Eagles faced the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl, Philadelphia lost 38-35. However, when the teams meet again Sunday in New Orleans for Super Bowl LIX, Dickerson hopes the Eagles' growth and preparation will yield a different, winning result.

"We had a lot of success in 2022 – you know, we got to the big game, and we didn't quite get it done," Dickerson told Andscape. "I think in 2023 [with] the well-known struggles that we had last year, you just realize how hard it is to get to this moment."

Since joining the Eagles' coaching staff in 2021, Dickerson has gradually worked his way up from being a defensive assistant to offensive quality control coach. Dickerson, a former offensive lineman for South Carolina State University, has a natural affinity for working on the offensive side of the ball. However, a year spent working with the Eagles' defensive unit gave him a fresh perspective, providing insight into how defensive players scheme against offenses.

His experience on both sides has endeared Dickerson to the coaching staff.
 

Dickerson's work has yielded a rushing offense that ranks second in the NFL in total rushing yards (3,048), second in rushing touchdowns (29) and fifth in rushing yards per carry (4.9). The Eagles also had four members of their offense selected for the 2025 Pro Bowl: Saquon Barkley, Lane Johnson, Landon Dickerson and Cam Jurgens.

Dickerson believes the addition of Barkley this season, the development of quarterback Jalen Hurts and the contributions of Eagles offensive coordinator Kellen Moore are the difference-makers for the Eagles' offense this go-round.

"I don't think there's a better feeling than watching those guys execute on game day. It makes all the time and all the work worth it when you're able to watch them go out there and be the best version of themselves on the brightest stage," Dickerson said. "They're good people, humble people, and they're hungry. They've put everything into getting to this point this year."

From the Super Bowl loss in 2023 to an early wild-card round exit a season ago, overcoming adversity reinforced for Dickerson why he wanted to become a coach. After he graduated from South Carolina State and his playing career ended, Dickerson describes his pathway into coaching as a natural progression.

"I've been playing this [game] since I was a kid. It's always been a part of who I am. It's part of me. I was named after a famous football player, and so everything in my life has been pointed in this direction," Dickerson said. "I got to be a part of this game in some shape, form or fashion. So, you know, I was fortunate that Coach [Buddy] Pough gave me an opportunity to kind of get my feet wet in the business."

Prior to joining the Eagles, Dickerson began his coaching career as a tight ends coach under then-South Carolina State head coach Buddy Pough in 2017. After a season with the Bulldogs, he then spent three years as an assistant tight ends coach and assistant special teams coordinator at Duke University (2018-2021).

Working with Pough taught Dickerson the importance of building connections with other coaches in the industry and having a strong work ethic.

Being an NFL coach has taught him how tough professional coaching is and the daily grind it takes to be successful. Most days he is in the office before the sun comes up and doesn't leave until hours after it goes down.

"You have to have a sense of work ethic to commit yourself to doing those things like waking up early, staying late," Dickerson said. "Working for Coach Pough, he just kind of instilled in me what it took to win. He was a winner [and] he bred us to be winners."

Dickerson loves strategizing different schematics of the game and building relationships with the players.

"His ability to connect with these guys is really special. He's a tremendous coach," Moore said. "He helps us in a lot of different ways. He helps with the scout team, helps with the tight ends and different positions. So he's got a really diverse background as far as being able to do a lot of different things to help us."

Dickerson's work within the Eagles' organization has garnered praise from his peers.

"Eric Dickerson is a bulldog, and what I mean by that is relentless. … He's tremendous, a tremendous help," said Jeff Stoutland, the Eagles' run game coordinator and offensive line coach. "He brings great value to the organization with what he does in his role.

"What I like the most about him is he's got that little smile. I don't know if many people will be smiling with all the time he has to put in and the relentless work that he has to put in, but he does it with a smile. One day he's not going to have to do that job. He'll be coaching at a position."

Dickerson has aspirations to become a position coach and ultimately a head coach in the NFL. He hopes his promotion within the Eagles organization will inspire other alums of historically Black colleges and universities to dream big.

"I think that regardless of where you go to school, regardless of what your circumstances are, if you put your mind to something, you can do it. You just have to be committed to whatever that process takes," he said. "So it would mean the world to me to be an HBCU alum with Super Bowl champion tagged to my name."

Mia Berry is the senior HBCU writer for Andscape and covers everything from sports to student-led protests. She is a Detroit native (What up Doe!), long-suffering Detroit sports fan and Notre Dame alumna who randomly shouts, "Go Irish."