Nick Sirianni said on Sunday that “everything’s on the table” for the Philadelphia Eagles. On Monday, a day after a fourth straight loss and on the same day the club said Jalen Hurts’ blood clot had spread to his lungs, he made clear what is not: Sean Mannion will keep calling the offense’s plays, and the assistant coaches will stay in their jobs.
Asked directly whether Mannion, the offensive coordinator, is still calling plays going forward, Sirianni answered, “Yes.” He then explained the limits of Sunday’s line. “Everything’s on the table,” he said. “But as far as, you know, who’s coaching the positions and who’s calling the plays, that will remain the same. And you know, we’re looking for answers and we’re looking for solutions.”
Sirianni spoke to reporters for about 15 minutes on Monday, October 19. The Eagles are 2-4 after a 25-14 home loss to the Carolina Panthers and play the Dallas Cowboys at Lincoln Financial Field next Monday night, October 26. The Panthers loss · Sirianni on Sunday.
“I lean on our medical experts”
Most of the early questions were about Hurts. A joint statement from the club and his agent, Nicole Lynn, on Monday described a deep vein thrombosis with bilateral pulmonary emboli. Hurts will be treated with blood thinners, and Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport both reported that he is expected to miss the rest of the season. Hurts’ diagnosis.
Sirianni was asked whether the club could have handled it differently, including reports that Hurts got little sleep the night before the October 11 game in London, after the clot was found. He would not second-guess anyone. “You know, guys, I’m not a medical expert,” he said. “I lean on our guys in all those situations, right? I’m a football coach. I lean on our medical experts in every situation. I have full trust and full faith in them.”
Pressed on who took part in the decisions and why Hurts was allowed to fly home, he pointed to the statements the club has already released and said he would leave it there. He also defended the staff’s record: “The same doctors and trainers that helped 21 of our 22 starters be available in the Super Bowl are the same guys today that deeply care about our guys to help them.”
Asked how Hurts took the news, Sirianni said he keeps those conversations private, but he spoke about the absence. “I haven’t been without Jalen for an extended period of time. I have the utmost confidence in Tanner, but you know, I miss him, right?” he said, adding that he and Hurts have been head coach and quarterback together for six years.
McKee’s offense and a team “in a rut”
Tanner McKee, who went 26 of 45 for 215 yards and a touchdown in his first start in Hurts’ place, is now the starter. Asked how the offense might change for him, Sirianni said every game plan starts with what the players do well. “Of course with change of different positions comes slightly different things,” he said, “but … you still have your core things that you wanna be able to do.” He said he has “a high confidence level in everybody in this building,” starting with Mannion: “Sean, and that’s why I hired him.”
He did not hide where the team stands. “Obviously we are in a rut right now. I don’t think there’s any question that we’re in a rut,” he said when asked whether the defense’s workload could split the locker room. He returned several times to the same idea: “No coach is on an island. No player is on an island. Not one side of the ball is on an island.” And on the losing streak: “Right now with four losses in a row, we all have a hand in that and we all have to get better, and it’s never just one thing.”
The Eagles’ injury list is long. Saquon Barkley has missed two games with a hamstring injury, and Sunday cost them defensive tackle Jordan Davis (ankle), edge rusher Nolan Smith Jr. (concussion) and running back Carson Steele (shoulder). Sunday’s injuries.
What comes next
Philadelphia gets an extra day this week, so its first full practice is expected on Thursday. The Cowboys, also 2-4, visit on Monday, October 26, at 8:15 p.m. ET, which is 3:15 a.m. Tuesday in Cairo. Schottenheimer on the Cowboys’ injuries. The Eagles then visit the Washington Commanders on Sunday, November 1, a game the league could still move out of the Sunday night slot. Flex deadline.
No published comments yet. Start the conversation.