The Eagles are back at the NovaCare Complex preparing for their Week 10 Monday night game against the Packers, and head coach Nick Sirianni spoke to reporters for the first time since their bye week about some of the trade acquisitions. He noted that he was happy with the rooms as they were, but it’s been awesome to add talented depth to the roster.
Here’s what the head coach had to say:
On Eagles’ trade acquisitions
“Looking forward to being able to coach those guys”
Sirianni went on to explain that all three players they brought in have familiarity with a different guy on the coaching staff which is always a good thing — he noted that it doesn’t always work out that way, but this time it did.
“Talented guys that have played a bunch of good football in the NFL, each bringing a different thing in bringing depth to our positions. Was really, really excited about our roster of how it was, and it’s been awesome to be able to add it to it.”
The head coach also pre-empted questions about the availability of Michael Carter, Jaire Alexander, and Jaelan Phillips for their Monday night game, and said that they’ll have to see where they all are at the end of the week to know what that might mean for their game status. He add that it was nice to have a couple extra days to get guys acclimated, but everyone is different in terms of what the turnaround might be.
JAELAN PHILLIPS
“Explosive player. Able to get to the quarterback, violent in the run game, can create a lot of disruption — just a lot of how we like to play that position. Vic [Fangio] having familiarity with him is obviously big, takes away some of that learning curve of getting ready to go. So, lot of things to like about him.
Obviously you do a lot of work on these guys when they’re coming out of college, and liked him then, and it’s been fun following his career. We were able to practice against him a couple years ago, really showed some really good things in that. Played against him in 2023, and so, lot to like about him. Really, really, really good player. Getting to know him a little bit, [I] like the person. So, excited to add him to the mix.”
JAIRE ALEXANDER
“We obviously think highly of the player we have now on the field, that’s why we went and got him. So, you just go to work, you practice, you see where he is, and you see what it’s going to look like on Sunday. So, excited to get out there with him today and watch him go.”
On the bye week scouting
Sirianni talked about how they stayed true to their bye week process, which is something that has evolved over time. One of their traditions is to meet at Sirianni’s house instead of at the building — although the head coach joked that it’s not really all that different, it’s just doing the same work somewhere else.
“I think we’re doing a good job fundamentally across the team, as far as tackling, and catching, and taking care of the football, and coming after the football, and all those different things, and blocking.”
He went on to say that they continue to focus on the fundamentals, and they have to continue to get better, which will require them to put the work in to do so.
On Lane Johnson
“Lane’s one of the best payers in the NFL, maybe one of the best players of all time at his position. The things that he can do is freaky, and I see him continuing to do that. I love that consistency that Lane has — he’s a superstar football player, and he does it week in, week out, and I continue to see that through the season.
So, feel the exact same way about him as I’ve felt about him the last four years. He’s having a great year, and we need him to have a great year, he’s one of our best players.“
Other notables
- When new players are acquired, Sirianni explained that they have an orientation in place with all the different departments and coaches to get them up to speed.
“I think the most important thing that we want to stress is a little bit of how we practice, what the culture is, our team rules, stuff like that.”
- Sirianni said that he’s thankful to have a partner in Howie Roseman and that they have similar philosophies in terms of their aggressive approach.
- He talked about the Packers, and noted how talented the roster is and how much respect he has for Matt LaFleur. Sirianni also mentioned how disruptive Micah Parsons can be in both the run game and the passing game, and it’s hard to keep an eye on him when they’re moving him around so much.
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