Nick Sirianni

Q. I wanted to ask about LB Nakobe Dean. What did you see from LB Nakobe Dean his first two years when he wasn’t playing, as far as behind the scenes? And what are your impressions of the way that he’s playing now? (Reuben Frank)

NICK SIRIANNI: Nakobe is playing really good football. We’re really excited about how he’s continued to evolve as a player. I think you got to see Nakobe be able to contribute on special teams, particularly when he was healthy in 2022. He made a big hit that I remember against Tennessee and had some really good plays. So, you saw his ability. You saw his talent.

And he waited patiently that year and was able to get meaningful special teams reps that we saw great talent from. And then off the injury, worked his butt off to get himself back.

I can’t say enough for how he prepares and how it’s translating on the field. I know he’ll continue to work hard to continue to get better.

Q. As you’re thinking about the four years you’ve been here, what has DE Brandon Graham meant to you personally and professionally? (Dave Zangaro)

NICK SIRIANNI: I can’t say enough good things about [Brandon Graham] BG. I think you guys have asked me this a couple times, and everybody and every workplace needs a Brandon Graham. His energy is contagious. If you’re having a bad day and you get around him, he can turn your day positive. Obviously, the [type of] player [he is] speaks for itself and the play on the field. He was having a great year.

I just can’t say enough about him as a leader, as a captain, as a teammate. And I’ve said this a bunch: When I first got the head-coaching job, to have [former Eagles DT Fletcher Cox] Fletch, and [Former Eagles C] Jason [Kelce], and [T] Lane [Johnson], and BG, four guys that were 10-plus year Eagles on the offensive and defensive line, really made the transition from coordinator to head coach a lot easier because of who they are as captains and people. And BG is right there at the top of the list.

He means a lot to me, and I just can’t say enough good things about BG.

Q. The off-the-field stuff with DE Brandon Graham, obviously just tremendous impact on the organization. But on the field, multiple injuries at the same position. That can always cause problems. Do you feel you have enough there at this stage? (John McMullen)

NICK SIRIANNI: I feel like we have good options in-house. And I know that [Executive Vice President/General Manager] Howie [Roseman] and his staff will leave no stone unturned.

But, again, like I said, you only focus on the guys that you have right now. And the guys we have, I’m excited about their opportunity. As bummed as I am for Brandon and losing him, I’m excited for these other guys’ opportunities – [OLB] Josh [Sweat] and [OLB] Nolan [Smith] and [OLB] Jalyx [Hunt]. Nolan keeps getting better, [OLB Josh Sweat] Sweaty is having a great year, and Jalyx is seeing an up-tick in his snaps.

Jalyx and Nolan play with relentless effort and great physicality. As bummed as I am for BG, I’m excited for the opportunities we have for guys in-house. And we have other options as well, in-house.

Q. I know you said Sunday that you were holding out hope. With DE Brandon Graham, is there any more definitiveness about what the projection is for the rest of the year? He shared he was having surgery next week and questioned on the sideline, ‘Can you play with this?’ What do you envision with him for the rest of the year? (Brooks Kubena)

NICK SIRIANNI: I think it’s pretty well known that he’ll be out for the rest of the season. Again, my heart goes out to him and how much he’s put into this thing, his entire career and this season. And we’ll sure as heck miss him.

I know one thing about BG is that the play, like I said, speaks for itself. His leadership is very special. And BG is going to be around. He’s going to be still leading.

I know that man can lead when he’s on the field, when he’s off the field, no matter what. I’m excited that we still have his leadership and everything that he feeds this football team. But bummed for Brandon.

Q. If I could change gears a little bit to the upcoming game against the Ravens, do you find that a lot of the challenges you guys will face trying to stop Ravens QB Lamar Jackson and Ravens RB Derrick Henry are kind of similar to what opponents face trying to deal with your duo of QB Jalen Hurts and RB Saquon Barkley? (Martin Frank)

NICK SIRIANNI: Both different players, different schemes, everything like that. But I think the thing that you can really focus on is Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry are phenomenal football players that help their team win football games. And Jalen Hurts and Saquon Barkley are phenomenal football players that help their team win football games.

Excited about the opportunity this week because it’s our next one. It will be a really good opponent, really well coached, good players, good atmosphere that will be there. Excited about the opportunity this week. And we’re going to have to be on it against a really good team.

Q. I know that your teams have gone up against Ravens RB Derrick Henry a decent amount over the course of your career. Any one game or moment in particular stand out to you? And just your thoughts on being front row to RB Saquon Barkley versus Ravens RB Derrick Henry on Sunday? (Tim McManus)

NICK SIRIANNI: Obviously, both great football players. A lot of respect for Derrick Henry. Like you said, I’ve been able to see him a bunch when I was in the division. I think we played him one time since I’ve been here, in ’22.

Big, strong, fast, hard to tackle. He is as advertised when you see him in person. And obviously we all see it, you guys all see it, the play speaks for itself.

We’ll have to be good with our fundamentals. You’ve got to be in the right positions on defense. You’ve got to tackle well. You’ve got to get off blocks well. You’ve got to have relentless effort to the football which is everything we pride ourselves in defensive football and playing good football.

He’s able to hit a home run and make you pay if not everybody is on the same page, if you’re not tackling well, if you’re not getting off blocks well, if you’re not hustling to the football.

So that part of it reminds you of Saquon because it’s similar. With Saquon, if the team doesn’t tackle well or get-off blocks well or is not hustling to the football or is not all on the same page, he can hit a home run. It’s similar for both guys.

Q. When we talked to WR Britain Covey at the end of last week, he said he feels this team this year is better equipped to handle adversity, just based on the experiences they went through last year and the way the team has taken to your messaging of staying humble during this win streak. Do you agree with that premise? And either way, why or why not? (Olivia Reiner)

NICK SIRIANNI: I think anytime you go through adversity it makes you stronger if you allow it to. Again, last year is in the past. We are 11 games into this season, and we have gone through adversity this season as well.

When you go through that, do you let it shape you? Do you allow it to be humbling and learn the things that you can learn from it, understanding that when you go through adversity, that is a great opportunity for growth?

I think that’s what we’ve seen, growth through adversity. That’s part of our nature of lifting in the weight room. You can’t get stronger unless you go through adversity lifting. It’s the same thing here.

Having that mindset of, ‘Hey, we’re going to get better from this.’ I think that’s been our mindset in what we learned from last year, what we learned from some of the difficult things we went through this year.

I think that you’re better as you go through adversity, and there’s no question – if you allow it to [shape you]. And I believe this team, this coaching staff, these players have allowed our adversity that we’ve gone through in our time here together to shape us and get us to where we are right now.

So, we’ll continue to let our experiences mold us and strengthen us. And [it’s a] good opportunity this week against a really good opponent.

Q. I wanted to follow up on what happened at the end of the first half there and what you might do differently next time? (Bo Wulf)

NICK SIRIANNI: Not going to get too much into that. I’ll keep it the same as what we talked about after the game. We didn’t coach it well enough. We didn’t execute it well enough. I’ll just keep it at that right now.

I respect your question. Sorry, I just don’t want to get into too much there schematically.

Q. OLB Josh Sweat has seven sacks during your seven-game winning streak. He seems to be having a bounce-back season. Last year, he had that four-game stretch where he played 60 or more snaps. He had a crazy game against the Bills where he played 81, I think. Was there a conscious effort to bring that down this year? This year, I think his highest snap total is 45 in any one game. And then obviously, he’s probably going to have to play more with DE Brandon Graham being out. How do you balance keeping his snap counts down and the need for him to play more with DE Brandon Graham out? (Jimmy Kempski)

NICK SIRIANNI: All our players’ rep counts are on our mind and thought through. I think I’ve answered this, too, through some Saquon questions, but everybody has an individualized plan. Sweaty is no different. He’s having a good year. He has his body in shape to play the plays that he’s playing.

But you think about everybody going into every game, how many touches you want them to have – not that you can always control that – how many reps you want them to have.

But there’s some flexibility within a game. You may have a number in mind of how much you want them to play, but it could swing five, 10 plays either way. So, there’s some grace there.

But, like I said, it’s our job to think through every single player and their health, and how we practice them, and how we play them each week.

With that being said, you do what you need to do to win each football game. And just like I say with Saquon, you try to manage it through Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, knowing that every game is so important. And in every game, you have to focus on how you are winning this football game.

That’s what you love about the NFL. It’s unlike any other sport; all chips are in every single week because there’s only 17 of them.

So, to answer your question, it’s always on our mind. It’s on every player’s mind. Everyone has an individual plan. And then it can go back and forth with where you get it to. And when you get into a game, things can change a little bit and will change a little bit.

Q. DT Milton Williams had a strong game against the Rams. What have you seen from him this season? And do you think that his versatility lends itself to him playing edge more now that BG is out? (Chris Franklin)

NICK SIRIANNI: Like I said, we have options to do different things there. Milton has done a really good job. He’s tough. He works hard. Good teammate. All the things that you want out of one of your players. Plays with good fundamentals. His fundamentals continue to get better.

I’ve said a lot of nice things about [Inside Linebackers Coach] Bobby King as the linebacker coach. [Senior Defensive Assistant/Defensive Line Coach] Clint Hurtt has done an unbelievable job as our defensive tackle coach, helping our defensive tackles get better fundamentally. And Milton has seen that success because of how he works and the coaching that he’s getting from Clint.

He made a couple of nice plays in our game and had a really nice game against the Rams. That being said, you can’t be great without the greatness of others. A lot of double teams were going towards [DT] Jalen Carter in that game, which let Milton have some opportunities one-on-one that he was able to win.

So, it’s just a style of good defense. Again, you need your teammate, you need your brother to play to the best of your abilities. And I think we saw that on Sunday.

Q. Just to ask you about your schedule here, you don’t have to get on a plane for the rest of the season. Two bus trips and four of your last five at home. What’s the value of that at this point in this season, especially for a team that has played so many games coming out of an early bye? (Ed Kracz)

NICK SIRIANNI: I mean, I think we’ve made up all that time on the Brazil trip and the Los Angeles trip last week. I’m just kidding. [Laughing.]

But it’s good. At this time of the year, it’s a benefit. There’s no doubt. To be in Philadelphia where you have these close teams next to you that you can take bus trips to, that’s huge.

We played a lot of road games early on, but when you play a lot of road games early on, now you have the opportunity to play some home games. We love being at home in front of our fans where it’s loud. The best place to play in the NFL. We know how rowdy it will be when we get back home in a week.

I think it’s an advantage to teams that think it’s an advantage. And we definitely think it will be an advantage for us, the opportunity to be home and not get on a plane here. So, excited about that.

I think that’s big picture, and that’s something that I need to look at every once in a while. The only thing we’re focused on right here as a football team is the Baltimore Ravens.

Q. What’s your philosophy or policy as far as injured players traveling with the team, being around the team during the week? Because in the past four years, it’s kind of varied based on the player and the injury. (Zach Berman)

NICK SIRIANNI: That’s exactly it. Everybody’s a little bit different.

I know what it’s like to go through an injury as a football player, and it can be a really lonely place when you’re watching your teammates go out every week. And I put myself back to 2001 where I’m out with a leg injury at Mount Union, and every time my roommates left to go play a game, I would be sobbing in my room that I wasn’t able to be a part of that. I like to be very sympathetic towards that.

I want the guys always to be around the team: meetings, games, home or away. Everything is dictated, though, on the player’s safety. Can they be on the sideline for a game based on their injury? Is it safe for them to have a plane ride – which, in this case, we don’t have – or a long bus ride?

We talk about that every week at the beginning of the week, ‘Hey, is this guy good to go? Boom, here.’ And with guys on IR – we’ve got a little formula for all those things to have a plan for all those guys.

But I think the most important thing that I want those guys to feel from me and from the team is that, just because they’re not on the field, they have contributed to where we are to this point and will continue to contribute. And they’re part of this football team.

Because it is lonely. It can be a lonely place. I hate saying that, but it really can. You want to embrace these guys, put your arms around them, and let them know they’re in it with us to the very end and a reason why we’re in the position we’re in currently.

But everyone’s treated a little bit differently based on their injury and whether it’s safe or not for them, or beneficial or not for their recovery, to be on the field or to be in a plane.

Q. I’m sure you’ve seen DE Brandon Graham’s sentiment that he’s going to be around. Is that your expectation that he’ll be able to take these trips, whether it’s practice or games? (Zach Berman)

NICK SIRIANNI: Haven’t got to that point yet. I sure as heck hope so. We need him. I need him. The team needs him. Because, again, Brandon Graham affects the team way more than just on the field because – you guys know him – of the person he is, because of the captain he is, because of the teammate he is. His enthusiasm and love for football and love for his teammates are infectious.

And like I said, everybody and every workplace, I hope and wish that they have a Brandon Graham available to them because it brings up everybody every single day. And that is a special, special quality that Brandon Graham has.

So even if they say he might not be able to go on the sideline, I will be lobbying with everything I have to make sure that he can. And I’ll do my best to protect him on the sideline if the ball gets anywhere close to him.