Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni is receiving much criticism this week for his response during the Eagles’ press conference on Wednesday, December 20.

A reporter asked if the coach had any regrets about the last interception that cost the Eagles the game against the Seahawks on Monday Night Football, and Sirianni’s response was interesting, to say the least.

The third-year head coach seemed to meander from a confession that his team often plays for pass interference calls to making excuses for his quarterback’s decision-making and his offensive coordinator’s play-calling. This led fans and analysts to pile on the conspiracy theories.

Nick Sirianni’s Lengthy Answer Leaves Him & His Team Open to Criticism
Sirianni’s full, and lengthy quote reads, “At times there we’ve seen you can get a pass interference there. It was what it was on that particular play, but if you get a pass interference call there and if a team is giving you a one-on-one shot for very similar to what happened on the other side of the ball, they ended up getting a one-on-one shot that had some different things there, and we’ve seen it.

We had a one-on-one shot against the Rams, and you can get a pass interference, and now you’re in position to kick it. So, we have some of the best receivers in the NFL outside. So, there are times where you’re going to do that. We felt like in that situation, we had an opportunity to. Hey, it didn’t work out that particular time.

But we’ve done it at other times in two-minute drills, and it’s worked. In that particular time, it didn’t work, so we understand the criticism, but not only could you get a pass interference, but also A.J. has a tremendous ability to come down with the football in one-on-one situations. “In this particular case it didn’t work out, but we’re comfortable with what was called and what we did in that scenario, and we’ll be better next time because of it.”

Fans & Analysts Accuse Sirianni of Covering for Jalen Hurts & Offensive Coordinator
Zach Berman of PHLY Sports tweeted his hypothesis about the odd rant, saying, “…my guess is Nick Sirianni was covering for someone with this answer. I could be wrong, but it would surprise me if someone as obsessive about situational football as Nick would want the ‘Let’s try to get a pass interference’ call when they could realistically have two throws to get into FG range.”

Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer posted about the long answer initially on Wednesday, calling it “One (of) the most bizarre answers from a head coach I’ve covered explaining why a QB threw an interception into double coverage:…”

Then, after over 200 thousand views and over a hundred comments, McLane shared more thoughts, saying, “Nick Sirianni is likely avoiding something here, and taking the public bullets for your QB is part of the job and can garner respect, etc.” McLane then goes on to say, “It is the toughest position to play and there is immense pressure. The QB doesn’t need more piling on. And as long as hard coaching it’s happening behind close doors, it isn’t a huge issue.”

Commenting on these posts and more, fans responded saying everything from “Considering AJ said he was the first read on that 3rd and 8 sideline throw it wouldn’t surprise me if he’s covering for his dumbass offensive coordinator” to “I mean is this on Jalen or just the worst play call and explanation of all time ever in the history of football.”

The Eagles Now Have Just 3 Weeks to Get Back on Track
The last couple of weeks haven’t been great for the Eagles in the media. On top of suffering three straight losses, Sirianni covertly changing defensive coordinators and 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey showing how easy it is to predict the Eagles’ plays on the Mannaingcast all made Sirianni and his staff a laughing stock.

It’s notable how fast this has all happened. The Eagles were 10-1 coming out of Week 12. Now at 10-4, it seems to have all slipped away. The Eagles now have three weeks to get right before the playoffs.

Two of those games are against the 5-9 Giants. Though Sirianni looks to be on the verge of losing the locker room, getting a few wins and putting some points on the board would go a long way to quieting his critics.