Sean Mannion
Q. The decision to coach the game on Sunday from the box, what went into that decision and what was the process like with Head Coach Nick Sirianni as you went about deciding that? (Eliot Shorr-Parks)
Sean Mannion: We used the preseason and the in-stadium scrimmage to our advantage. I was really happy to get to experience both. Obviously, I’ve been in the box in Green Bay, been on the field in Green Bay, calling it from both was a really valuable experience. Ultimately, I just felt like, after doing both, it was the best decision for our staff for communication with the quarterbacks and the best decision for the team. It was a very valuable experience, and I think we’re in a good place moving into the season.
Q. What do you like about it up there? What’s the advantage for you? (Dave Zangaro)
Sean Mannion: There’s a lot of different things, pros and cons to both. When you’re in the box, obviously you have a little bit more space. You’re not pacing around. You have the tablet. It’s a little bit like sitting at a desk, but I think just the vision is a little bit unique there, the higher vantage point. Honestly, I felt comfortable with both, and really, I just felt like the vision type of thing really led me to the decision. Ultimately, the other part of it is we have a great staff. They communicate really well on the sideline. There’s been constant lines of communication, and I think all of that led to the decision.
Q. Are you expecting Washington Commanders Defensive Coordinator Durante Jones to have more of a Defensive Coordinator Brian Flores influence than the other previous coordinators he’s worked with? (Jeff McLane)
Sean Mannion: It’s one of the unique challenges of the Week 1 opponent with a new system. We’ve really used this extra practice time with the bonus week to our advantage. We want to be ready for everything. Whatever Durante ends up showing us in the game, I feel like we’ll be well-prepared for it. Like any opponent, whether it’s a new coordinator in Week 1 with new wrinkles or if it’s a first-time coordinator at a place, you’re always ready to adjust in-game, and we have contingencies laid out for different things we might be anticipating.
Q. How much is your history with Green Bay and playing Minnesota and also being in Minnesota, how much does that help you sort of understand it maybe a little bit more? (John McMullen)
Sean Mannion: Just depending on what they show, obviously, a background against Minnesota when Durante was there, I think we’ve seen him four times in two years, at least in my time there. Like I said, it’s a new coordinator. I’m sure there’ll be new wrinkles. We feel like we’re ready for anything, and we’re ready to adjust. We’ve gotten a lot of work against Minnesota, me and [Run Game Coordinator/Tight Ends Coach] Ryan [Mahaffey] in particular, just with our past experience. Our staff has been working around the clock, looking at everything that they might do from across all their histories. We feel like we’re in a good spot. And again, we were able to use the extra time to our advantage there.
Q. You said that calling plays from the box is the best decision for communication with the quarterback in particular. How does being up there — What is the plan, especially in between drives with QB Jalen Hurts, compared to if you were on the sideline down there? (Olivia Reiner)
Sean Mannion: The biggest thing is, again, the communication of the staff is constant. Instead of me being fixed in one place and talking to one individual, another advantage of the box and having a staff that’s done a great job is I can be talking to everybody all the time, and then they can be distributing that information accordingly. I think really more than anything, it speaks to [Quarterbacks Coach] Parks [Frazier]. He does a great job with Jalen every day. I’m in constant communication with him and all of our position coaches. Then it allows for everybody to coach their units, and I can kind of survey from up top and distribute information from there, and they take it the rest of the way.
Q. QB Tanner McKee and QB Andy Dalton said that they haven’t been told yet who the QB2 is going to be. What’s the reasoning behind that? (Tim McManus)
Sean Mannion: These guys are competing every day. They work great together. It’s a competitive environment. They’re pushing each other, and we feel good about both of them. They’re both ready to play. They’ve been preparing to play since they got here in April. We’re continuing that. And then when we make a decision, we will, but we feel great about both quarterbacks. They’ve been pushing each other. They’re great teammates to one another. They’re great competitors, and they’re improving day by day. They’re ready to step in and play for us, each of them.
Q. When you look at the offense and just how you guys have progressed from back in July, at the start of everything, to now, are you guys kind of where you thought you would be? How would you assess the progress you guys have made? (Martin Frank)
Sean Mannion: I feel like we’re in a good spot. Back in April, when we started, almost feels like ancient history at this point. But yeah, I’m really happy with the work that the group has put in. We’ve been getting better and better each day. In terms of scheme, we’ve been building and building, kind of one layer to the next, to the next, from the foundational stuff we started with in the spring and then adding wrinkles, adding layers, adding different adjustments here and there. The progression of how we’ve taught it, I’ve been really satisfied with the guys. Their commitment to learning, their commitment to the fundamentals we’re asking of them, has been outstanding. Ultimately, I joke about it, but it does feel like a long time ago, and I think it speaks to the sheer volume of work that our staff, that our players have all put in to putting us in a great position headed into our first game.
Q. I know as you say, working around the clock, it’s a figure of speech, but I guess what keeps you up at night with this job? What’s the types of things that are on your mind when you’re thinking about this job? (Zach Berman)
Sean Mannion: I don’t know if I’d describe it quite that way in terms of keeping me up at night, but I think it’s just the planning and the preparation. There are so many elements that go into it. You’re working together as a staff, you’re studying your opponent, you’re trying to think of the best way to really put all your players in a position to succeed. Then there’s the planning that goes into planning a meeting, planning your offensive schedule, planning a practice schedule. There’s the teaching of it. That’s one of the parts of the job of coaching that I enjoy most, getting in front of the guys and teaching all the things that we just work so hard to put together. Then getting to see it in action at practice and then, for Sunday, getting to see it on the field. Those are the things that you love about coaching. There’s so many different elements to it, but football’s a beautiful game because they all come together. I definitely, I stay awake thinking about that, but I wouldn’t say it keeps me awake. It’s the enjoyable part for me. That’s what I love about it.
Q. When you made the decision about whether it would be in the box or on the sideline, did you talk to Defensive Coordinator Vic Fangio much about that decision? I know he obviously has the preference of being up in the booth. (EJ Smith)
Sean Mannion: Vic, I’ve said it before, he’s as good as there’s ever been in this league, and he has a wealth of experience. It’s been great getting to work with him. I absolutely seek his advice on many things, that being one of them. Obviously, calling defense and calling offense are different in some ways, but I think the perspective of a play caller is one that he definitely was able to shed light on for me. I really value Vic and getting to work with him, and he has a wealth of experience. I try to tap into that every day.
Q. Now you’ve been on the job for a few months. I was wondering how you find your experience as a player maybe impacting it with the booth decision. You were a quarterback that communicated with a coordinator, the backup role. How do you find your time as a player impacts that decision-making process? (Eliot Shorr-Parks)
Sean Mannion: As it pertains to the booth thing, you naturally go back and I think of the people who have called plays for me or people that I’ve worked with and where they’ve called it. As I tallied it up, it was really a blend, almost 50-50. I think it really speaks to it’s going to be maybe a little bit different for each individual, each team, but both have proven to be very, very successful throughout the history of football and really through the history of my experience working with different play callers on the playing side of it. Ultimately, I felt like we gave it, I think, a lot of thought. I did conversations with our staff, always doing an after-action report on the game-day communication, all that stuff. And I feel like we’re in a great spot, but you’re absolutely right. You think about, when I was in LA, where were they calling it? Then I was in Minnesota, where were they calling it? Your peers, as they’ve gone to different places and have had success in both the box and on the field. If there was one thing, as I was thinking it through, I realized, you know what? There’s plenty of great play callers who have done it from either spot.
Q. As you have shifted to game-planning mode for the first time ever, how have you balanced or struck a balance between what you’ve installed in your new offense versus the stuff that QB Jalen Hurts and the offense have previously done well? (Jeff McLane)
Sean Mannion: When we set to kind of build our system, we looked at it in terms of we’re building a library. This is starting in April. So we’re building a library of formations, motions, protections, run scheme, so on and so forth. All the stuff that Jalen in this offense in previous years has been successful at has been a part of that. That’s been a part of that teaching progression. There’s different layers, there’s different details, maybe tweaks that we’ve brought, as well as new scheme. Ultimately, it’s been all part of the same library. Now that we head into the season, you find yourself pulling a different book off the shelf here, a different book off the shelf here, as well as studying the opponent and finding new things, new books that you’re putting on the shelf, just to steal that analogy. This has been a constant process of building up our library, so to speak. Now that we’re in season, we have time on task on different things. Then each week, there’s always going to be a new wrinkle, a new scheme that maybe we haven’t done, but we have the time during the week to prepare accordingly, get it detailed up. The things that Jalen and this offense have excelled with previously and the things that we’ve brought that are new and different have all been a part of that library.
Q. What is the process as you narrow the scope in a game week to figure out, obviously it’s widespread in training camp as you game plan, what are the priorities as you narrow that scope and figure out what you’re doing that week? (Dave Zangaro)
Sean Mannion: Ultimately, it comes down to putting the players in the best position to succeed, whether that be in the run game, pass game or pass protection. You have so much time during training camp, during OTAs, to evaluate their strengths, their weaknesses, the things that they do at a really high level. As you study your opponent, you try to look at where that skill set, their strengths, align with how you think you can attack a defense. It’s why you practice with so much flexibility throughout OTAs, throughout training camp, working guys in different spots, because come Week 1, come Week 5, come Week 12, you never know when you’re going to want to move a person here, a person there to attack a specific opponent.
Q. You spoke about your appreciation and your attitude for the running game, which seems somewhat counterintuitive for a former quarterback. Where does that come from? (Zach Berman)
Sean Mannion: He’s right. I do love the run game. I love all facets of football. A quick sidebar: one of my first real responsibilities when I was coaching for the Packers was drawing runs, which anyone who’s done it knows can be a tough job. There’s a lot of detail. There’s a lot of different adjustments that the defense makes, how the offense blocks different combinations, how they attack different fronts, snap points, motions. There’s a lot that goes into it. [Offensive Assistant/Assistant Tight Ends Coach] Eric Dickerson does a great job for us. He’s been outstanding doing it for us, but that was my first exposure in coaching. That was my first real responsibility and getting to learn from Steno [Green Bay Packers Offensive Coordinator Adam Stenavich] in Green Bay, from [Green Bay Packers Offensive Line] Coach [Luke] Buckus, from [Green Bay Packers Head Coach] Matt [LaFleur], really diving into that run scheme. [Ryan] Mahaffey taught me all kinds of stuff in our time in Green Bay together with the run game. I think it was a whole new world I was able to dive into, and I always loved the balance between the run and the pass.
Then I really got to dive into what is the engine that really makes that go. So yeah, Kupe’s [Offensive Line Coach Chris Kuper] right. I’m very passionate about the run game. I’m very passionate about just getting to work with the offensive line. So much goes into that position, both physically and mentally. It’s a great cross section of your team in terms of the toughness, the play style, winning the line of scrimmage. The run game’s, in large part, an embodiment of that. He hit the nail on the head there. I love how one hand, one thing feeds the other, so to speak. Productive run teams are usually productive pass teams as well. We talk about that, the marriage of the run and pass and how the best offense is a productive run game leads a productive pass game or vice versa. It’s all part of that marriage and all part of being an offense that’s on the attack. I think it goes back to I knew a little about the run game, and then I really dove in when I first got into coaching. I learned a ton, and it certainly kind of shaped me as a coach.
Q. What have you seen from WR Makai Lemon’s progress over the last two weeks since he’s been back, and then his readiness for Sunday and everything? (Martin Frank)
Sean Mannion: He’s been getting better and better each day. We spoke during camp. Unfortunately, [he] missed some time in practice, but I think what’s been impressive is, mentally, he’s been very sharp: alignments, motions, route detail. He’s done a really nice job of that. His confidence is growing with each practice. Again, he’s a young player. He’s getting better and better. I think the mental focus that he had while he was injured, staying engaged, has shown because each time we go out there on the practice field, his confidence is just growing and growing, and you can see the talent. I mean, it stands out every time you’re out there, and it’s going to keep getting better and better.
Q. How are you feeling going into your first game as offensive coordinator and play caller? (Tim McManus)
Sean Mannion: I feel great. I feel great. I’m so thankful for the opportunity I’ve been given. I love the game of football, and just to get to do this job every day, it’s a blessing. The people I get to work with, the players I get to work with, the opportunity that the Eagles have given me, I’m so thankful for it. And so, to the earlier question, it really doesn’t feel like work to me because I enjoy what I do, and I’m very, very lucky to get to work with these players, these coaches, this organization and feel great heading into the first game. There’s been so much work, and we’re working relentlessly, and ultimately that builds your confidence, knowing that I’ve spent hours and hours and hours thinking about the plan, preparing the plan, preparing the players. I feel confident and excited for Week 1.