The Eagles were back to work on Wednesday as they prepare for the Steelers, but head coach Nick Sirianni was still being asked about the off-field drama surrounding the team this week. From the in-game and post-game reactions, to Brandon Graham’s public comments, there’s been a lot of noise from the outside the past couple days.
Sirianni said that he talks to the guys all the time, about anything and everything, and so of course he’s talked to Jalen Hurts and A.J. Brown about what’s being said.
“I see them [Jalen Hurts and A.J. Brown] working to get better. I see them working to get better together. Whether that’s after an install meeting, where they gather right here and talk about how A.J. will run a route, or how Jalen will read — all those different things.”
The head coach went on to say that people get to see a three-hour window on Sundays, during a time when emotions are going to be as high as they’re going to be. Sirianni later said that after talking to Hurts and Brown, and with his personal view of the situation, he felt like the outside perspective was wrong.
He did note that they understand why it would appear that way, and admitted that this was something they addressed during a team meeting. The head coach wouldn’t go into what was said, but explained that they address everything they need to so that they can stay completely focused on their next opponent.
“After you talk about it, and after you go through all your conversations there, is boom, now our focus is on this [game].”
Sirianni said the overall mood heading into their next game is ready to go, ready to go to work. This team is super locked in to what they need to do each day.
The head coach also admitted that they all have things they need to get better at in the passing game, but Hurts has been protecting the football at an outstanding rate, he’s been accurate, and has been making plays with his feet.
“The thing that doesn’t get said enough about Jalen Hurts, is he’s, what, 45-19 over the past four years. That’s pretty darn special.
And so, do we all have things to get better at in the passing game? Yeah, I think that’s obvious. I think that’s what we’ve been talking about. We all have things we gotta get better at — coaches, players.”
Other notables
- He elaborated on comments made earlier in the week about this team feeling more like the 2022 squad rather than 2023. Sirianni said that they’ve learned a lot this past year, and so not only are they more prepared, but there is more joy from players after a big plays which was maybe missing a bit at the end of last season.
- Sirianni was asked a little bit about the Eagles Week 14 opponent, with the head coach saying he has a lot of respect for the Steelers’ defense and how Mike Tomlin has been so consistently successful throughout his career. He noted that you can see how important it is for the Steelers to protect the ball on offense and take the ball away on defense just by watching their tape.
