Sirianni, Roseman Determined to Return to the Super Bowl

In a NovaCare Complex with an empty locker room, Eagles Head Coach Nick Sirianni got a bit emotional.

“Half of the fun of this thing, half of the reason we do this, is the journey,” he said. “That is the last time that this group of men will be together.”

Days earlier, both his offensive and defensive coordinators Shane Steichen and Jonathan Gannon were announced as new head coaches of the Indianapolis Colts and Arizona Cardinals, respectively. New draft picks will come into the team. Free agents will walk. Trades will be made.

“Different things are going to happen, but you cherish the journey,” he expanded. “It didn’t end the way you wanted it to, but the journey is special. The relationships that were built will last forever.”

Sirianni was joined by Eagles General Manager Howie Roseman on the podium at the team’s season-ending press conference, and was particularly grabbed by the fact that they were almost there.

“We were there,” he said. “We were close, and all that does to me is make me hungrier to get back. That’s about the last time you’ll hear me say ‘get back,'” he said, explaining that his mindset is to take things one day at a time.

Still, that one day at a time mentality can lead to recognizing how close to the top you are.

“That doesn’t stop you from, when you see the red and yellow confetti fall,” he elaborated, “you don’t think to yourself, ‘I’ve got to do everything I can do to help our guys get back into this moment.”

The biggest thing that will help in that regard will be the hiring of the next offensive and defensive coordinators. On the offensive side, a strong candidate is Quarterbacks Coach Brian Johnson, who has a longstanding relationship with Quarterback Jalen Hurts. Sirianni saw this season how important that is.

“Brian stepped right in here and had a great relationship with Jalen,” Sirianni observed. “The trust was automatically there.”

“Brian’s excellent with Jalen as far as his development of fundamentals,” Sirianni added. “Position coaches first and foremost have to be able to get their players better as players. … That happens through fundamentals.”

Sirianni also commented that Johnson had a hand in helping prepare the offensive gameplan, and was impressed with his scheming.

“Even though he wasn’t the offensive coordinator,” he noted, “he still helps a great deal with our schemes and the way we’re attacking defenses in the run game, the pass game, the protection world, in situationals. He’s been a great influence.”

Sirianni noted that there are a lot of good internal candidates and said that it was important the hires be made as soon as possible, but was not to be rushed either.

“We’ll be diligent,” he said, “and if it takes us interviewing nine coordinators, like we did with running backs to get [Running Backs Coach Jemal] Singleton, we’ll do that to get the best person that can help us be a good football team.”

When it comes to the offensive coordinator, Sirianni expressed that he wants the next one to continue assuming the playcalling responsibilities.

“It helps me manage the game better,” Sirianni explained after he indicated that he liked the setup. “It helps me interact with the players more on the sideline, and it helps me be able to discuss something with somebody upstairs, to get on the defensive headset when the offense is up and vice versa.”

On the defensive side, where there is not as clear of a candidate, Sirianni is open to change but said that he has some core thought processes on how a defense should look and would do what’s best for the team.

“Do I like a lot of the things that we’re doing on there, yes I do,” he noted, specifically calling out the turnover and explosive play differentials. “So there’s things of that nature, of that defense, that I like. And then there’s going to be things situationally that are nonnegotiables, I guess,” he added, such as third and long, red zone, and four minute defenses among others.

“I’m going to naturally have things that I’m going to require the next defensive coordinator to do,” he added, “but I also know that I’m hiring somebody to do the job to the best of their abilities.”

The coordinator question isn’t the only one. Eighteen players are slated to become free agents this year, with possible other retirements along the way. There is also the question of a possible extension of Jalen Hurts’ contract. Hurts has concluded year three of his rookie quarterback contract, making him eligible for an extension, and given his MVP-caliber performance this year, he could be in for a massive pay raise.

Roseman was asked about that extension, and while he declined to comment on specifics about contract details, he wants to keep Hurts around.

“Our goal is to keep the best players here for the long term,” Roseman said, “and he’s one of our best players.”

Roseman knows that there’s a large number of free agents this year, and knew that they needed additional draft picks.

“One of the reasons we made the trade last year was to make sure we had the picks going forward,” he said. “Even though we don’t have the amount of picks this year, we have a bunch of high picks, and then next year we’re going to have a tremendous amount of picks,” alluding specifically to compensatory picks that the Eagles would receive if certain free agents leave the team.

The offseason process of assembling the team through the draft and free agency is ongoing, and Roseman stressed that it wasn’t delayed because of the Eagles’ deep playoff run.

“During the season, we are doing everything for 2023,” Roseman said. “Coach will come to my office on a Wednesday and ask, ‘Who are you watching?’ and ‘What about this guy?'”

Roseman knows the part to play, and there’s still work to be done if getting back to the Super Bowl is to be a reality.

“We’re here to compete,” he said. “A lot of times I’ve heard this week ‘we’ll be back.’ Just because we say it doesn’t mean we mean it, and I take great pride in trying to do my part.”