Eagles 35, Steelers 13
NICK SIRIANNI: Fire away.
Q. There seemed to be less RPO today, as we've seen earlier in the season. Was there an emphasis in the bye week to do more traditional drop backs?
NICK SIRIANNI: No, because RPOs have been pretty good for us. RPOs, we're looking to run the ball first on RPOs, so when we do pass, it's an extra pass that happens. We are looking to run it first there.
But, no, we definitely worked hard in the bye week. I'm really happy with our coaches, how much time they put in and how much information we got done. It's a group effort, analytics department giving us a lot of different things. Defensive coaches looking at things for offense and vice versa.
We felt like we fixed some tendencies. Were able to get couple things off of some tendency, create some explosive plays off some tendencies that we had, and that's what the bye week is for. It's a very, very important part of the process.
Q. You've seen games like that from AJ Brown before.
NICK SIRIANNI: I sure have. When I was Indianapolis and he was having them on our defense. I've seen that before.
Q. Was this any different, more special?
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, it was a big time game. It was special because I was on the same sideline with him, right? You know, just so much credit to Howie and his staff to get that done.
He makes us so much better. He's just doing a great job. Jalen and him have an instant connection on field, we know they have the connection off the field. He had a big time game for us today and it was good to see that.
Q. AJ mention on his first touchdown he wasn't the primary read. What was that play supposed to look like?
NICK SIRIANNI: You know, we had a couple different things going on there. Felt like Minkah was a little low on the play and Jalen took advantage of that.
So there was -- whether he was a primary or not, Jalen did a good job of getting through his read and finding him for a touchdown.
Q. AJ said that Jalen is still in the lab, becoming the player he can be. How close is he?
NICK SIRIANNI: I think that's been asked to me before. What I've answered with that is we don't know. Jalen is the type of guy that's going to continue to get better because of the type of person he is, the type of football IQ he has, the football character he has, the toughness he has, how much he loves football.
And he's just going to keep -- I was always taught those are the types of guys that reach their ceiling. I don't know if we know what his ceiling will be. I know this: He's getting better every day and he's committed to that.
That's a good thing for the rest of your team when your best player and captain is getting better every day.
Q. You looked especially fired up on the -- I mean, obviously you're fired up a lot, but especially the Zach Pascal touchdown there, fake screen to Goedert. What did you see there?
NICK SIRIANNI: I love Zach Pascal. You know, Zach Pascal for the five years or four years I've been with him, has always done the dirty work. Always.
It's great when you can reward a guy that does the dirty work who might not have the stats. It's awesome to be able to reward him for that. It's what happens sometimes when a guy is doing dirty work. Everyone is focused on the other guys when he is doing the dirty work that he ends up wide open for touchdowns.
Zach doing all the little things that are important to a football team, that's sweet, right? I love to see that. I love the guy. You aren't around a guy for that long and not have a good relationship with him.
I'm so glad he's here. I knew he could do all the dirty work we wanted him to do. Man, that was sweet. I think even to this day, my son, and maybe not you, but that's one of his favorite players is Zach Pascal. I think what happens is just the same thing that happened when I would go home and hear my dad talk about the guys he loved on his football team or his track team. My son has heard -- he's a little too young, Taylor is a little too young, but they've heard me say so many good things about Zach Pascal, it's just one of his favorite guys out there.
So, yeah, it was awesome to reward him for all the hard work he's done.
Q. Even with all the wins, everyone seems to be emphasizing that you haven't played a complete game yet. What would a complete game look like in your eyes?
NICK SIRIANNI: I thought we had a good first and second half today. I do. I think that's a good football team. I know that's an extremely well-coached football team. I can't say enough good things about Coach Tomlin. His resume speaks for itself.
That's a really good team, and I think we played a pretty compete game, and we needed to today to be able to close that out. We really wanted to emphasize how we start the second half. We have had some second half woes, and we really traced it back to how we started second halfs. It was good to be able to go done and execute today, to start things off, set the tone that we needed to play a complete game. I thought we did that, a good job of that today.
And it changes. You can up three scores and you're at the end, of course you're going to take some air out of that and not be quite as aggressive and run the clock. I thought today was one the most complete games we've had all year.
Q. Was there something you guys did during the bye week that you found about the team that showed itself today?
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, there was a lot. Obviously not going to give you all the answers, but I think went out and executed. It's such an important part of the process. The bye week is such an important part of the process, and it's not just the coaches. It's the entire building. Analytics department, strength and conditioning staff of how we are going to finish better in the second half.
We had our ideas of how we wanted to start the second half better, but the strength and conditioning staff, the training staff, and the doctors also had a -- I'm not smart enough to say the word, how the body works there going into the second half. We'll do anything we can to make this team better.
Just a credit -- obviously all the credit goes to the guys, but so many parts of this organization, Mr. Lurie, the head of that organization, and he's always -- supports us in everything, in all departments.
And then you see something like that after a bye week and all the hands-on deck, that's why it's the greatest team game. It's not just the coaches and players, it's the front office, the analytics department, the equipment staff with Greg, right? It's Dom in the security. It's everybody. It's Ted and his strength and conditioning staff, Tom and the training staff.
Pat Dolan in the video staff. We ask Pat Dolan for everything, and how many different things can you give us in cutups. Yeah, can't say enough good things about the organization.
Q. As far as Jalen's development, what does it say about where he is as a quarterback to have this type of game?
NICK SIRIANNI: You know, it says a lot, because you want to be able to win many different ways. He went out there and executed today, you know, in the air. Threw some great deep balls and read the defense well. He just continues to develop.
Q. In one of the meetings you had mentioned a couple 6-0 teams, 7-1, whatever, coming out against teams that weren't doing as well and kind of laid an egg. What does to show you about your team that they came off the bye in this type of situation?
NICK SIRIANNI: We got great leader, right, John? We got great leaders that are making sure -- I don't know who wrote it earlier today, but I got a thing, an update on my phone. It was like, Robert Quinn, Fletch went right up to him and said, Hey, we practice hard here. Robert Quinn said, Hey, that's all I need to hear.
How awesome is that? The best teams that I've been around practice hard. They just picked out the process of what we've done each and every week and just picked it up. They got their rest and came back ready to go. That doesn't happen unless you have great people and great leadership on your team.
Q. When have you have a guy like AJ Brown, how much does it No. 1 help the quarterback, but for the rest of the receivers, for them to get open? (Indiscernible.)
NICK SIRIANNI: Well, when you have AJ, Devonta. Dallas, attention was on Dallas on that play, on Zach's touchdown, right? So you got these play makers and guys making plays off them because the attention is on them. That doesn't just -- also goes for the run game as well.
We felt like the way the game played today we didn't run it as much as we normally do. It was great to be able to win that way.
AJ opens up, Devonta opens up, and Dallas opens up the run game as well.
Q. I think you mentioned Jalen's development. Just wondering what have you seen from him in that department to now when you're just cruising, especially the pressure that I would imagine goes with playing that position?
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, Jalen is ultra focused, and he's focused on the process of how he gets better every day. He's not focused on what his next contract might be or what we're going to do in three weeks or what the outcome of this season is or anything like that.
All he's he focused on is day by day. He's the leader of our team. That's huge. Everybody falls with that.
So he just -- it's if he had grown up in a football household and he knows how to handle the waves of a season, because there are waves of a season. But it's important that we don't ride those waves, right?
I know you guys got a job, a really hard job and you got to fill -- like you got a whole week -- well, four days today -- where we play next. Just got to be a lot of stories, so there can be a lot of riding of the wave, but Jalen doesn't allow him to do that. I'm done answering your question.
Did I answer that?
I just wanted to say like unbelievable. I've been to stadiums where Steelers fans take over. No way did I think that would ever happen in Philadelphia, and I barely saw any of those Terrible Towels. I did not see any of those. Our fans came out and supported us. It was unbelievable.
But my mom's cousin, I'm not claiming them. They didn't sit in our sections, they just live in Philly and grew up in Pittsburgh. You guys saw something, my parents grew up in Pittsburgh and everything like that, and my mom's cousin, she's like, hey, they want to say hello to you before the game. I'm like, well, they know they can't wear Steelers stuff and come on the sideline. She's like, well, we're not giving them on the sideline. And they were wearing Steelers gear.
So the cute Christmas cards with this one and this one and my other son, they will not be receiving one of those cute Christmas cards this week, but so much of a shoutout to our fans of coming out. It's Philly. This is what Philly -- makes Philly the best sports town in America.
It's freaking awesome. We've taken over stadiums in Arizona. Took over a stadium in Washington. And then like a team like Pittsburgh that travels well, no traveling here because none of our people gave up tickets. And then my mom's cousin, I'm not claiming her, they won't get a Christmas card.
Q. Nia is with us today, one of our flag football league participants. She has a question for you.
So with the quick turnaround for next week, what do you hope to emphasis with the team this week?
NICK SIRIANNI: Well, it's all about recovery. Those guys are in there right now. Because we just have such an unbelievable training staff, strength staff, the trainers, and the doctors, they're in there getting massages right now, eating the right thing.
That quick turnaround is what are we going to do to make sure our bodies are ready to go. Coaches have a short turnaround as well, so we've got to make sure that we get the plan together for our guys on a short week and our guys can go out and execute. Great question.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports