Head Coach Nick Sirianni and the Philadelphia Eagles coaching staff used their mini-bye weekend to focus on addressing team challenges without assigning blame. The Eagles, currently holding a 4-2 record, are preparing for an upcoming road game against the Minnesota Vikings, who have a 3-2 record.
The team is dealing with the recent retirement of Za’Darius Smith, who joined the Eagles for his 11th NFL season in early September. “I wish him the best. I really enjoyed having him on this football team while he was on this football team,” Sirianni said during a virtual press conference. He added, “As far as my confidence in the guys there on the defensive line, a lot of confidence in them. I like that position. I like the depth we have at that position. The numbers at how they play now will be distributed a little differently.”
Sirianni emphasized that finding solutions is more important than placing blame following Thursday’s loss to the New York Giants. “Any time we’re in a streak where we are right now,” Sirianni said, “having lost two games in a row, we’re not here to assign blame. We’re here to find solutions and that’s what this whole weekend was about. How do we put the guys in positions to be more physical? How is their rest or whatever it is from their bodies, how are their bodies feeling, always look inward first.”
He also highlighted the importance of winning at the line of scrimmage and expressed confidence in both offensive and defensive lines: “We know what the strength of our team has been – winning at the line of scrimmage. I have so much confidence in these guys – offensive line and defensive line, that we’ll get back to that.”
The coaching staff reviewed performance from the first six games during the break and identified areas for improvement, particularly efficiency on first and second downs. Sirianni noted, “The goal…is to ‘be more efficient on first and second down because right now we are not near our standard on third down.'”
Players returned to practice after time off as they prepare for a Vikings team known for its aggressive defense and balanced offense.
Despite recent losses to Denver and New York, all three phases of the team—offense, defense, and special teams—are focused on improvement as they approach upcoming games against Minnesota and another matchup with New York before their full bye week.
“Our job as coaches is to put them (players) in the best positions they can be to succeed,” Sirianni said. “The players’ job is to go execute. We all know we need to do that at a higher level – coaches, players, everything.”
