Veterans sidestep Sirianni questions
PHILADELPHIA — Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie is the only one who knows if embattled head coach Nick Sirianni will be back for a fourth season.
That makes Sirianni’s status after a late Eagles collapse the biggest question for fans and all who work at One NovaCare Way. And it triggered a contentious exchange Wednesday between reporters seeking answers and players who didn’t appreciate the line of questioning.
Defensive tackle Fletcher Cox, an unrestricted free agent, was upset when asked if he’d gotten any assurances that Sirianni would be the head coach should he return for a 13th season.
“Huh? Come on, man,” the 33-year-old Cox said. “He’s the head football coach of this team. Come on, man. There ain’t even no freaking discussion about that, man. I’ve got nothing to say about that. You’re a clown, bro. Get out of my face.”
Thankfully, the standoff ended that way, though there was one more attempt to probe the team captain.
“What is there to talk about man?” Cox said. “Because man, he’s a winner. He’s a winning head coach. Did we have some bumps this year? Yeah, but every team, every organization, everybody goes through it. We don’t look at firing a man who obviously won 10-plus games two years in a row, that took this organization to three playoff appearances three years in a row. That’s respect.
“He’s a good leader for this team. He does a really good job. Did we come up short? Yeah. Did things happen this year? Yeah. But I don’t discuss about firing a man. This man got a family. I don’t discuss about anything about that.”
Later in the day, there were unconfirmed reports that the Eagles and Sirianni were lining up interviews with potential coordinators, suggesting the head coach will survive. All of it is speculation right now.
It was that kind of day for a team that burst to a 10-1 start and collapsed down the homestretch. Players met with their respective position coaches and Sirianni, and were asked how they felt about their performances in an 11-6 season that concluded Monday with a 32-9 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Some players presented the work they detailed from the season during exit interviews, while others winged it. Rest assured, the star players were queried about what must be done to fix numerous issues.
There were a bunch of early exiting players, as the lockers of several free agents were totally cleaned out. That list includes quarterback Marcus Mariota and linebackers Nicholas Morrow and Zach Cunningham.
Beyond Cox, the underlying vibe in the locker room was of what’s going to happen next. That includes players asking about defensive coordinators Sean Desai and Matt Patricia, along with offensive coordinator Brian Johnson, who is supposed to be on the list of interviewees for head coaching jobs.
Just say there weren’t a lot of flattering remarks about the coordinators, according to an unscientific poll. Rather, there were players speaking in hushed tones about
the future.
Around 7 o’clock, three hours after the locker room had all but cleared, Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts was asked to weigh in on Sirianni. After all, the face of the franchise carries weight with the owner, who committed a five-year, $255 million contract extension and a no-trade clause to Hurts. Does Hurts still feel the same way about Sirianni, whose team lost six of its last seven games? Does he want him to be the coach in 2024?
“Owners own, coaches coach and players play,” Hurts said. “I answered that question the other day. I had no idea that was a thing. So, I don’t see why that would be the case. We plan on facing everything that we’ve done and growing together. Coach Sirianni, Brian, everyone.”
Super Bowl runners-up last season, the Eagles took a step back this year on offense and defense. Only special teams was steady, kicker Jake Elliott earning second team All-Pro, Britain Covey leading the league in punt return yardage and punter Braden Mann ranking among the league leaders in net average.
Management, including Sirianni, didn’t do the defense any favor when play-calling duties were taken from Desai and handed to Patricia. The Eagles went 1-4 with Patricia in charge. Eagles cornerback Darius Slay indicated that the coordinator restructure was almost impossible to work through for veterans, including in-season additions Bradley Roby, Kevin Byard and Shaq Leonard, and a young cast of players particularly in the secondary.
“It’s a big move all across the board,” Slay said. “I’ve never been a part of that with a whole new coordinator coming in. That’s tough.
“I don’t control that stuff. I just kind of try to do my job the best way I can. But trying to find two identities of (two) coaches is tough. That’s like having two marriages. You know how hard two marriages would probably be to a household? Two personalities of two women? That’s tough. No offense to the women. That’s crazy tough. One might want her feet rubbed. One might want her shoulders rubbed.”
If Slay and his teammates have an inkling of what’s to come with the defensive coordinator, they weren’t revealing it. There’s plenty of time for management to address it.