The Philadelphia Eagles were able to secure a victory over the Packers on Friday night. Before heading to the airport, head coach Nick Sirianni addressed the media about the game and the fantastic atmosphere.
“Brazil! Thank you! What an unbelievable atmosphere for a football game. Again, miss The Linc, miss our fans at The Linc, but Brazil, I mean, wow. That was incredible, and it was a fun, fun, fun atmosphere. It felt like a playoff atmosphere, and that doesn’t – your fans, people of Brazil, that was something incredible, and we really, we appreciate it. We appreciate the hospitality, we appreciate the fans’ support – it was a little louder than I wanted it to when the Green Bay Packers were coming out [he said with a smile], but, people of Brazil, that was, wow.”
Sirianni admitted that they had to shift to silent cadence due to the loud crowd noise throughout the game. He anticipated the noise level and had practiced for that scenario.
Here’s what the head coach had to say:
On the teams’ overall performance
Sirianni was asked about how this win, while good, reminiscent of some wins from the previous season. The head coach chuckled about the comparison and emphasized how challenging it is to win in the NFL, especially after a 10-hour flight – acknowledging that the Packers had to make the same journey. He seemed frustrated by the question.
“It was a good, good win against a good, good opponent.”
He expressed his respect for Packers’ head coach Matt LaFleur and QB Jordan Love and recognized the tough defense of Green Bay.
“What I’m really proud about, Jeff [McLane of the Inquirer] – it was sloppy, it was definitely sloppy, and both sides looked like they were sloppy, but we were able, as a football team, to persevere through some dark moments. There was gonna be some good stuff that happened in that game, there was gonna be some bad stuff that happened in that game, and our guys just kept coming back.”
Sirianni mentioned that they will savor this journey as not every Week 1 game is easy. They will enjoy the win and continue working on rectifying the mistakes.
On Jalen Hurts’ performance
The head coach discussed how the QB rebounded from turnovers. Sirianni admitted that the offense had a poor first quarter collectively but highlighted Hurts’ comeback and his connection with Saquon Barkley on a remarkable throw. He acknowledged that Hurts could improve on some throws and mentioned they could assist him with play calls.
“I thought he responded good – like, that four-minute drive we had. That drive started with eight-some minutes left, and we gave them the ball back with 27 seconds left. Why? Because Jalen [Hurts] and DeVonta [Smith] connected on some huge plays. That’s tough football. Four-minute football is tough football, and our guys really responded.”
On Saquon Barkley’s Eagles debut
“We’re so excited to have him, and he made some huge, huge plays throughout this entire game. He made it in the pass game, he made the plays in the run game.”
Sirianni mentioned that Barkley delivered crucial plays at key moments and scored multiple touchdowns. He emphasized Barkley’s value to the team, not just for his skills but also for the leadership and positive energy he brings.
On the defense’s performance
The head coach praised the defense for starting the game fast and aggressive despite the offense’s slow start.
“To play as badly as we did offensively and be down six-nothing to start the game is pretty awesome. And hats off to the defense.
Don’t get me wrong, we have some things to clean up on both sides of the football, but we could’ve gone down two scores right away, but the defense really did a good job of playing good red zone defense.”
Sirianni expressed his satisfaction with the new coordinators, Vic Fangio and Kellen Moore, calling them home run hits. He discussed Quinyon Mitchell’s debut and observed that the rookie doesn’t seem fazed by the moment, citing his smooth transition to the NFL based on feedback from Mitchell’s college coach, who was also Sirianni’s college roommate.
