The Philadelphia Eagles were back at practice on Tuesday for Day 1 of their mandatory minicamp, and head coach Nick Sirianni spoke to reporters before taking the field. This was the first time the head coach met with reporters since the A.J. Brown trade was official and most of his time was filled with questions about the situation.
When asked if it was a disappointing ending for a player that Sirianni had previously touted as one of the best, but the head coach stood on the past while looking toward
the future.
“I would say there was a lot of good years here, and done a lot of good things with A.J. [Brown] here — two times to the Super Bowl, I think he was All-Pro multiple times, Pro Bowl multiple times. So, I would say it was a great run.
But, [I’m] really excited about that room that we have. DeVonta Smith has had a really good offseason, has had, what, five good years of being an Eagle, as well. Very, very productive and excited he’s going to get extra opportunities that he worked so hard to be able to convert that.
Really excited about Makai [Lemon] and where he is this offseason. And just has ability to catch the football, has toughness, I think that’s a great addition to that room.
[Dontayvion] Wicks, I just think he has a very unique skillset of being able to get in and out of breaks and be really efficient at the line of scrimmage. For a guy that I’ve coached, he has a little Keenan Allen to him, and to his game.
[Hollywood Brown] and Elijah [Moore], really been excited to coach those guys for a long time. They have unique skillsets. [Hollywood] has great, great speed and excellent hands, and Elijah is just so quick at the top of his route.
And then, Darius Cooper and Johnny Wilson just have that ability to be kind of the dirty work guys that we’ve so valued in our offense, and I’ll always value that in an offensive receiver that can do some of the dirty work and do some of the other things from that.“
Sirianni said that he and Howie Roseman talk about every major decision, including trading A.J. Brown. He again noted that Brown did a lot of good things while he was with the team and said he wishes the WR luck in the future. Still, he reiterated that he feels good about the guys they have in the WR room now.
The head coach was asked about Brown’s comments in his interview with Maria Taylor about having to have difficult conversations in the locker room. Sirianni explained that the most successful teams are often the ones who are closely bonded, and it’s that closeness that allows them to hold each other accountable in greater way.
“And then you have really good leaders on our football team that are able to do that — Jalen [Hurts], Saquon [Barkley], Jordan [Mailata], Lane [Johnson], Landon [Dickerson], Zach [Baun], Q [Quinyon Mitchell], Coop [Cooper DeJean], Jalen [Carter], Jordan [Davis].”
Having a core group of players who are able to lead the team through tough conversations is something Sirianni recalls being part of the Eagles locker room when he joined the team. He credited guys like Jason Kelce, Fletcher Cox, Brandon Graham, and Lane Johnson for setting that tone.
Sirianni was asked specifically about the relationship and reported friction between Jalen Hurts and A.J. Brown, but the head coach dismissed the notion that it ever became a problem on the field. He elaborated on how connection can often be confused with getting along or agreeing on everything, when really sometimes a bond between players is nothing more than a shared goal for success — it doesn’t always have to look like being best friends or like Mailata and Dickerson being each others groomsman. The players just need to understand that they all have a common goal and they all need each other to accomplish that goal.
“It can look a lot of different ways, but I think it’s so important that we all understand that we have a shared mission and to get to where we need to go, we need each other. Not in this sport can we do it alone. If you want to do it alone, you have to pick another sport.”
