Nick Sirianni

Q. You’ve seen QB Jalen Hurts go through a lot of offensive coordinators, a lot of play callers. What have you noticed about how he handles it? (Dave Zangaro)

Nick Sirianni: I think one thing that’s really special about Jalen is just how consistent he is with his approach to getting better every single day, regardless of if we’re calling a concept one thing or if we’re calling a concept another thing or who the play caller is or who his quarterback coach is. Just consistency from Jalen with how he approaches a daily process. I always admire that about him.

Q. OLB Nolan Smith was pulled over for speeding. Did you address that with him and what’s your overall message to the team about it? (Eliot Shorr-Parks)

Nick Sirianni: Obviously, any conversation I have with any player will always stay private. With that being said, we address everything. We talk about everything. When it’s appropriate to talk about it with the individual, we talk about it with the individual. When it’s appropriate to discuss it as a team, I’ll choose to discuss it as a team. Yeah, it’s important.

Obviously, what’s so important is that we learn from our mistakes not only on the football field, but in the community as well and we try to get better from those things. Everything that we go through is a teachable moment on the field, off the field. That’s a big part of getting better.

Like I said, everything we address, it’s just a matter of how we do that with our players, but that’s why it’s so important that you’re in constant communication with your players [and] have good relationships with your players. Not that every conversation’s going to be lovey-dovey. There’s hard conversations, there’s tough conversations, there’s conversations where you laugh, there’s conversations where you cry, there’s conversations where you go through a process of that.

Q. Offensive Coordinator Sean Mannion mentioned sort of a blend of the offense, and you mentioned that with some of the things that QB Jalen Hurts has done well. When you went through this with former Eagles Offensive Coordinator Kellen Moore, do you lean on that when you went through it before? (John McMullen)

Nick Sirianni: Again, it’s about the best situation that we can put the players of the Philadelphia Eagles in, and ‘What is our scheme going to be as the Philadelphia Eagles?’ I think that changes year-in, year-out, whether it’s the same coordinator or you promote from within or if you go from the outside. We’re always doing what we think we need to do to help our players [and] put them in the best positions to succeed to do what they do well.

Sean’s done an awesome job thus far and just really like the command that he has in front of the room and the conviction that he has in front of the room and the knowledge that he has in front of the room. We’ll see how that looks. We’ve got a long time before we play. We’ve got a lot of practices to go through before we play a game. This is about figuring out what we do well, what we can do well, and sharpening our tools. You can run any scheme you want, but if you can’t block, if you can’t catch, if you can’t protect the football, it doesn’t really matter. All those things that aren’t looked at as sexy, the dirty work stuff, that’s what we’re working on perfecting right now as we get to know some new terminology and some new things [with] the way the offense goes.

And for that matter, some of the new things– what I love about [Defensive Coordinator] Coach [Vic] Fangio is like, Coach Fangio has continued to evolve as a coordinator throughout his entire career and the new things that he’s doing. It’s never the same year-in, year-out. That’s what we’re working on right now.

Q. None of your O-linemen, your starting O-linemen, have ever had a different position coach than former Eagles Run Game Coordinator/Offensive Line Coach Jeff Stoutland. What have you seen from Offensive Line Coach Chris Kuper as far as winning those guys over and kind of establishing himself? (Reuben Frank)

Nick Sirianni: It’s not about the win over. It’s about daily doing what your job is supposed to be. That’s the players doing that with Chris and [with] us as a coaching staff, and us as coaches doing that with them. You’re constantly putting deposits in the bank by building trust, by your knowledge, your conviction, daily work. That’s what we’re working on right now is that, and that’s on both ends.

These guys have to build trust with him, and he’s got to build trust with them. It’s not a one-way street and that never is. That’s what we’re working on right now, but I love the way Chris comes to work. I’ve been with the offensive line for the last five years. I love how they come to work with an attempt to get better every single day. Then the same thing on Chris’ part, great knowledge for the game, great ability to connect with players, great knowledge of the scheme of the different types of things that we’re going to be doing, and then just great growth mindset to figure out things that he may have not done in the past. That’s what we’re working on at this particular moment and that’s what’s going on.

Q. How much of a learning process is it for like a lot of the offensive linemen considering they’ve only had pretty much one way under Stoutland before and now? (Martin Frank)

Nick Sirianni: There’s a learning process for– regardless of carryover, regardless of everything, what’s important that everyone needs to do at this time of year is start back at square one and build our habits again from square one. We do that with our fundamentals, we do that with our schemes, we do that with our core values. That’s what we’ve tried to do throughout the five years. Just because you’ve been together, the offense has been the same or the defense has been the same, that doesn’t mean you just assume that everyone’s at phase four of where they need to be. No, you start back at square one and you start back at the little minute details because we all need [to be] reminded on that. Shoot, I’ll be giving similar messages all year because it’s the relentless approach of the things that you believe in that you need to do on a daily basis.

That’s where we’re at right now is everybody starting at square one because that’s kind of how we go about our offseason program.

Q. T Markel Bell, a rookie coming in. What does he look like at this point? I know you guys value the mentorship, a chance to be out there with guys like Ts Lane Johnson and Jordan Mailata. What does he look like? (Brooks Kubena)

Nick Sirianni: He’s just going through the process. Again, we don’t have pads on yet. Obviously, a big part of the evaluation [of] offensive linemen, and for that matter, any position, it’s football. This is about performing our fundamentals. There’s something I’ve talked a lot to the guys about. Some of the things that are happening right now is like invisible progress. You just have to keep going on little fundamental things, understanding that you might not see the proof of it quite yet. That’s sure as heck a statement for an offensive lineman who really has to go with the physicality of things that has to happen when they play. But it’s about those little things, the mental portion of it. I think he’s really sharp mentally of being able to pick things up.

It seems like he’s learning something new every day and handles the volume that has been thrown at him in a very positive manner. You like the ability that he has to move and his obvious freakish size when he’s out there. He’s had good drills, done really well in drills, has done really well in the classroom, and we look for him to continue to develop in that. But nobody’s a finished product right now as you guys know. I know you guys know that.

Nobody’s a finished product and we’re very early on in the stages of this. We’re going to make mistakes out there at practice today as players. We’re going to make mistakes out there as coaches, but the mindset has to constantly be like, ‘Okay, made a mistake today.’ You should be hungry for that and understand how much you can improve on every mistake that you make, and for that matter, every positive thing that you do.

This is a long, long process that we’re being diligent about every single day to continue to get better. I know it’s like, ‘Well, that’s coach-speak.’ That’s just really how we live and how we go about our business of just staying locked into the present.

Q. What have you seen in the growing relationship between Offensive Coordinator Sean Mannion and QB Jalen Hurts, and your relationship with Sean as well? (Pat Gallen)

Nick Sirianni: Again, it’s a process. It’s a process in that. Trust is built through hardships together. Trust is built as you go through this with time spent together. Trust is built through daily showing up and doing what you’re supposed to do. It takes time. And like I said, what I admire about Jalen– one of the things I admire about Jalen– is his commitment to [getting] better every single day and his commitment to the process. When you do that, you build that trust with people.

Sean’s here at all hours of the day. I’m not sure I’ve beat Sean in here yet this year and I’m not sure I’ve left [later] than him at this point. He grinds and he does what he’s supposed to do and works really hard at his craft, and you admire that, but that takes time and that’s built.

That’s what we’re working on right now. Again, all this is a process. And I understand your guys’ questions because it’s like, ‘I haven’t talked to you in a while. Let me ask some of these questions.’ I guess my answer to most of them has been, ‘Well, it’s a process. It’s a process.’ It is. I’m not trying to give you guys just coach-speak. It’s just the way it is.

We talk about that trust a lot of how that’s built and those are really– the hardships, the time that you spend and consistently doing what you’re supposed to do is what builds those things. Sean and Jalen, what I admire about them is they don’t miss a day on that. So, whatever day we’re on right now, 30-whatever, that’s how far along we are in the relationship because I’m not sure that either of those guys have missed a day of doing what they’re supposed to do because of who they are.

Q. Has WR DeVonta Smith’s attendance been any different this spring than previous years might be? (Jeff McLane)

Nick Sirianni: I’d have to look there. What I’m excited about [with] the attendance that we’ve had of the guys that have been here, and excited to work with the guys at this point in the season, but I would have to go back and look at that. But I know this about DeVonta: every day he’s here, he’s working his butt off.