Getty Eagles coach Nick Sirianni shakes hands with Coach Daboll after loss.
Despite a quote about Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni’s job being safe back on January 3rd from ESPN’s Adam Schefter, we’re now hearing that Sirianni’s firing could actually be on the table.
On Wednesday, January 10th, Tim McManus, ESPN’s Eagles Reporter, made an appearance on the Ringer’s “Philly Special” podcast with Sheil Kapadia. As they spoke, Kapadia had “Seven Burning Questions” for McManus about the situation in Philadelphia, and Nick Sirianni’s job definitely came up.
While talking about the unprecedented nature of the Eagles’ fall from grace, McManus said, “They might end up moving on. I don’t know if I want to say that’s the most likely, but I do feel that it’s in play.”
McManus’ Quote Has Gotten A Lot of Attention
The quote and rumor have now made the rounds in the social sphere. The comments from Philly fans range from Sirianni roasts concerning the Eagles’ recent failures to questioning how Eagles brass could fire a coach who has been so successful. Strangely, both viewpoints are valid.
BREAKING: The #Eagles firing head coach Nick Sirianni is “in play,” per ESPN.
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Sirianni took Philly to the Super Bowl last season.
A post by MLFootball containing the quote has already received 2.5 million views. Here’s a taste of the comments:
“Why would you fire a coach that went to the Super Bowl last year and has his team 11-6 going into the Playoffs??? Makes no sense!!” –@StanDaniels64
“Not happening. That would be insane.” –@KennethHazlett_
“Tush Push merchant tbh…” -@HowUBenFeller
The Rumor of Sirianni’s Impending Termination Could Mean Another Move Is In the Works
Most fans who commented on posts about McManus’ quote expressed a positive or negative view of Sirianni’s coaching performance during his tenure. A few fans, though, went a completely different direction. Some suggested the Eagles could be ready to make a move for a new head coach, which could realistically happen as early as next week.
@_MLFootball @PHLDawgs @TheBirdsBlitz @KBeckEagles @SSN_Eagles @jelynchjr @JoshReynolds24 @V_tabs1984 @nina_alston @JustinLever3 @YourHost_Breezy Belichick to the Eagles is “in play” too
It was Eliot Shorr-Parks of 94WIP that suggested just three days ago that the Eagles should throw head coaching money at Mike Vrabel, ex-Titans head coach, to be their next DC. But, it’s entirely possible that Eagles head brass sees Vrabel as an upgrade to Sirianni. Believe it or not. The way this team has imploded since the Bye week makes anything possible.
Of course, the Galactic Emporer himself, Bill Belichick also parted ways with the Patriots this week as well. Rumors have swirled now as to where the 71 year old coaching great might end up, and the Eagles have certainly come up.
Today, (Friday, January 12th) There’s Additional Reason to Believe Sirianni Could Be On His Way Out
Playoff performance would obviously be a measure by which the Eagles front office could decide to keep Sirianni or let him go. Today, though, something else concerning happened that could also factor into the decision.
Bleacher Report’s Erin Walsh reported today that Eagles Pro-Bowl wide receiver A.J. Brown had wiped all social media accounts ahead of this week’s playoff game. The speculation around this would understandably be that Brown might just be blocking out the noise to focus on the game, but this wasn’t all that happened.
Smitty of Barstool Sports also noticed that Brown had taken down all references to the Eagles on his Instagram profile. This combined with Brown still not practicing today has led some to believe Brown might actually have had a feud going with the coaching staff despite him speaking to the contrary. Some are even floating he may have quit on the team. Whatever the reason, losing the buy-in of a Pro-Bowl talent like Brown wouldn’t bode well for Sirianni.
With all of these rumors hanging over them like a dark cloud coming into Monday night against the Buccaneers, Sirianni and the team must know there’s only one way to silence it all. They must win.