On Friday afternoon, after a 15-minute opening statement from owner Jeffrey Lurie, the Eagles introduced new coach Nick Sirianni to the Philadelphia media. Then, after yet another opening statement of more than 10 minutes from the new coach, the virtual press conference was finally called into question.
And, as you can expect, a large percentage of the questions had to do with the situation of the team’s quarterback, and whether or not Carson Wentz will return to the starting position next season – and whether he will return or not. Although there were many questions on the subject, Sirianni did a good job of keeping his cards close to his vest, revealing none of the Eagles’ intentions as a defender, sometimes making it look like Wentz would be the guy and moments later, making it look like he could easily be playing elsewhere next season.
There’s a LOT to cover at this press conference, and we’ll have more in the next few days (and hours), but let’s start by taking a look at the questions fans are likely to want more answers to: Who will be the Eagles’ quarterback next season?
For each of them (which are presented in chronological order), we will provide the question, Sirianni’s complete answer, as well as a small analysis of ourselves. Let’s dive in …
Did you accept the job with the expectation that Carson will be the starting quarterback and is it your job to fix it?
“I accepted this job because of the great organization it is. And the plan here is that we have to go through a lot of things here. We are putting our coaching staff in place so that we can get the best people here as coaches. And what we need to do is evaluate the entire lineup. We have a lot of things to do in the coming weeks assessing the whole lineup and all positions – defender, wide receiver, defense – this is what we are going to dive into here. And it’s great.
“We have two defenders in Carson Wentz and Jalen Hurts who are first-rate defenders. And many teams have none, so I am very excited to work with both.”
Analyze: There were reports coming out during the Eagles’ coach search that suggested the team was looking for a coach who would rather try to fix Wentz rather than just dispatch him immediately and choose to develop Hurts. If these reports are true, it would suggest that Sirianni is here to fix Wentz. But that may not necessarily be the case, either because Hurts ultimately proves to be the best option or Wentz doesn’t believe that he needs to be fixed and, therefore, becomes impossible to fix.
There is something to be said about the old saying that if you have two defenders, you don’t actually have one. It certainly seems to be the case here in Philadelphia, but with a young coach and two young defenders, there may be a chance that he will turn one of them into a successful attacker.
Still, that was a total non-response, something that you’ll see is kind of a theme here.
There have been many reports about Carson’s relationship with the organization being damaged. How have your conversations with him been so far and do you think it’s a reconcilable relationship?
“I can’t talk about it. I spoke to Carson, I have been looking for our players – it has been a whirlwind, obviously, in terms of the amount of things I have had to do since then I accepted this job. I am trying to communicate with all of our players as soon as possible. I spoke to Carson, we had a good conversation. I know he talked to our offensive coordinator too, and I’m very excited to work with him as we go. “
Analyze: This is another non-answer, but in this case it is at least more understandable. After all, Sirianni has been here for a week and had just one conversation with Wentz (it looks like), so he probably doesn’t know if the “fractured” relationship reported between Wentz and the organization can be fixed or how long it might take.
It is also worth imagining what happened to make this relationship so tense. Was it the decision to write Jalen Hurts? Or the decision to put Wentz on the bench in favor of newcomer QB? Or a combination of both? Either way, it is starting to look like this relationship will not be healed until Hurts is out of the picture and Wentz again feels secure in his position as the team’s full-back. This is not really a reaction to anything Sirianni said on Friday, just a reading from the room.
Did you also talk to Jalen Hurts? And what was your message to the respective defenders?
“Yes, I also spoke with Jalen. Again, I will keep our conversations private, they are conversations between the player and me. But the same conversation with him. I am very excited to work with him. He had a great – I mean, we We studied him last year and he had a great college record. He played significant snapshots this year when he played well.
“The conversation with him and the conversation with the guys that I had [conversations with] is that I’m very excited to start working with you. And most of the conversation is getting to know the individual beyond football. I will learn a lot about them in football in the coming weeks, but I wanted to learn about each player I spoke to personally. And then, when I look at the tape – and I’m looking forward to doing that – be honest and have open and honest communications with each of them about what I saw on the tape and how we can all improve. “
Analyze: As mentioned above, any conversation Sirianni has had with players so far was probably just an introductory conversation. Reading a lot about them would be dangerous at this point. That said, it is interesting that Sirianni is in contact with the two players. I wonder how many other players he has been in contact with so far and how far on the depth chart it would go depending on the position. Like, did he talk to the support striker? The third lifeline? Probably not. But Sirianni knows he will likely be judged by the success of these defenders, specifically which one he decides to start with.
And that takes us straight to our next question …
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You said you have two high-level QBs in Carson Wentz and Jalen Hurts. Does this mean that there will be an open competition in the quarterback if the two return?
“Again, this is something we have to look at and evaluate. And I’m not ready to say that yet. We are just evaluating our players, evaluating each position. And I mean each position. We don’t know any of these guys, from what we saw in the tape, because we haven’t watched any yet. So each position will be evaluated and each position will be “open”, I think to say, and we can’t wait to start watching the tape and see what our players can do. “
Analyze: Another non-answer, but this may be the most interesting of all, because it doesn’t seem like one where he would have to give a non-answer. If he still hasn’t decided his quarterback – which, duh, is his first week in office – then it looks like there would be open competition in the QB position. But he would not go so far, saying that more assessments need to be made. He ended up admitting that all positions will be “open”, but this is not the same as having an open competition at the beginning of the training ground.
It is also important to note that Howie Roseman, not Sirianni, will be in control of the 53-player squad. This means that, at any time, Roseman can change one of the two defenders, regardless of who the coach considers the best choice. Obviously, Sirianni will have control over the match day lineup and decide the starter weekly, but if Roseman is surprised by an offer or believes that moving one of the QBs is in the long-term interest of the team, he can do that – although we would like to assume that the coach would at least be consulted before any such decision is made.
Carson Wentz experienced a very sharp decline last season. That was the main topic of that interview, how to get him back on track? And do you have a deadline to establish a holder? Do you think it is important to have one, for example, going to the training ground?
“You know, we talked about a lot of things. We talked about, as Mr. Lurie mentioned, we talked about game planning and how we would attack defenses. We talked about leadership qualities and the things that involve that and communication skills. A wide variety of things we talked about and, you know, of course, we talked about positions on the team, as much as what we could be looking for, as much as positions on the team.
“So again, a lot of different things we talked about. Players, positions, technical staff, everything was on the table. And as for the titleholder, I haven’t thought about it much yet and nominate a titleholder, which hasn’t even crossed my mind. More once, just try to evaluate the players on our team and bring the team together. “
Analyze: If there is no timetable for establishing a holder – and none of these guys are traded – it will be a hell of an offseason of speculation here in Philadelphia. And if both of you are still on the training ground to make it to the list (and it is indeed an open competition), get ready for one of the most intense field coverings you have ever seen from beat writers.
In the last 3 years in Indianapolis you have had three different defenders in Luck, Brissett and Rivers. How do you think it prepares you to deal with the quarterback’s situation here. If you have to decide between Carson Wentz and Jalen Hurts, does that mean that you are not married to a particular QB? Can you go with anyone?
“I think that all means that we have found ways – the job of football coaches is to find ways to win each game. There is always a way to win each game, and we just have to find out what it is.
“I think it is the same thing that we went through in Indianapolis. We had to find a way to win with each defender, and we will not only have to find a way to win not only with each defender, but we will have to find a way to win with each offensive line player, and every running back, and every receiver, and every defensive line player, and every security and every corner, right? That will be the key, right “To find out what players do best and form our system based on this.”
Analyze: I don’t think the Eagles will be alternating between the defenders weekly, depending on the confrontation, but it’s good to see that Sirianni doesn’t seem to be coming here with a certain system that he will try to make his players fit. Instead, it looks like he will adjust his system in an effort to maximize his players’ skills. That always seems to be the best option anyway.
Can you tell us in one way or another whether Carson Wentz will be back with the Eagles next year?
“I can’t answer that. Again, [we’re] evaluating everything. Evaluating everything and, again, there are a lot of things to do to evaluate everything. “
Analyze: The trainer definitely received some training for this one. And I’m sure that “evaluate everything” was the phrase he was told to include. Just a hunch …
That said, it is certainly interesting that Sirianni did not commit to Wentz’s return next season. Does that mean it will be traded? Not necessarily. But it does mean that he could – since there is no other reason for him not to be back in Philadelphia next year. This is the closest to confirmation that the Eagles are open to negotiating with the 28-year-old QB.
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