Q. (Regarding starting quarterback.)
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, it's looking like it's going to be Gardner. Jalen did everything he possibly could to get his body ready to go, and just at the end of the day he's not going to be able to do it.
Man, he tried like crazy and I know I still wants to go. That's just the toughness that -- Jalen Hurts is the toughest player I've ever been around. My brother and I talked last night. I talk to my brothers at the end the week all the time. He's in recruiting now, so he's I think out here in Eastern Penn -- he's not out here, but he needs to get some of the good Eastern Pennsylvania players over there in Western Pennsylvania.
He's like, man, how did he play through that? Like he did that to his shoulder? Yep, yep, that's what he did. How did he throw any passes after that? I go, because he's the toughest son of a gun that I've ever been around.
For him to go out there and do what he did after he had that sprained shoulder was really truly remarkable that he was able to go and like play, and not just play, but play really well.
And so he's so tough. But we just felt like it's the best thing that he doesn't play this week. His body is not there yet. Gardner will be our guy and he'll be ready. Gardner worked his butt off for this opportunity against a really good football team, and had a great practice yesterday.
I think you guys have all heard that how good a practice he had yesterday. A lot of energy out there. He's ready to go.
Q. What's your confidence level that if you need Jalen next week against the Saints you'll have him?
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, you know I'm not going to go there yet. We'll take it one day at a time, one game at a time obviously.
Again, like I said, he's worked his butt off to try to get himself back. We'll see day by day of where he is.
Q. Can you take us through the logistics of Tuesday?
NICK SIRIANNI: See, I gave you guys -- I normally wouldn't even give that to you there, and now you're asking me about next week. Like I gave you a little and you're trying to push and knock through the door. I'm not ready there yet.
Q. Can you take us through the logistics of Tuesday? Gardner was in Mississippi for Coach Leach's services. From your perspective, Steichen said he talked to him a couple times, but what else? Were you sending him clips?
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, with Zoom and the way you can video things, like, I mean, installs were videotaped. Zoom was available to him when he was available. Obviously we can FaceTime him and talk through with clips and everything.
So there a was ton of communication back and forth while still giving Gardner time to be able to do what he needed to to honor his coach that obviously he was very close with. We wanted to respect that as well and he needed to be there.
And so, yeah, there is a lot of communication that went back and forth. We felt like we didn't miss a beat. It was a walk-through. Obviously he missed the walk-through plays, but he's so on it right now and we feel really good at where he is mentality. That's just never an issue with Gardner. He's got to always go through that process of might not get a lot of reps but ready to go, because that's his job as the backup quarterback.
Q. He is obviously an emotional guy to begin with. What have your conversations been like...(indiscernible.)
NICK SIRIANNI: Just, you know, I mean, obviously I'll keep all our conversations private, but I just wanted to be there for him if he needed to talk about anything. I thought about the coaches I'm close with and the coaches I'm close with when we kind of talked -- I'll say a little part of it -- we talked we talked about every time my teammates and I get together or we text back and forth, there is always a story about one of our favorites coaches and Larry Kehres. Now, Larry Kehres is alive and I'm not saying that like in that sense, but we do all talk about him.
I don't even want to go there with Coach Kehres, but like he'll live on forever because of the stories we have for him, and kind of we talked about and Gardner shared a couple stories of Coach Leach, just what made him special, what made him special to him, which was cool.
And that man will live on forever, too, because of how many lives he touched. That was our talks about that like without getting too much into it. I know he means a great deal to a lot of the people in this world, Coach Leach, and Gardner is one of them.
Q. I know you got bigger goals, but you got on opportunity to tell the team, the eight Pro Bowlers, I think you had nine alternates, how exciting was that for you to have that kind of individual success for so many guys?
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, any time guys get recognized I think that's awesome. It's just a great feeling as a coach, great feeling as a team that you're able to tell the guys that they were recognized by their peers, by their fans, for the job they have done.
I feel like that when like the guys make Pro Bowl or make All-Pro or player of the week or player of the month or whatever, it's so much -- for play of the game every week, I mean, I don't know -- they come in this way? They don't come in that way? There is pictures on the wall back here for play of the game each week, and then we take them down and put them back up.
One thins that is so cool for me, is we give them a player of the week photo of themselves that they get to take home and put wherever they want to put them. Like I know every time my assistant will be like, do you want me to pass them out? I'm like, no, I got it. I want to give it to them so I am able to, hey, awesome, look at this picture right here.
It's always cool just like when they score a touchdown or get a sack or have an interception, it's cool to be there to celebrate with them. Same thing in this scenario as well.
I always thought one of the coolest things as a coach, too, is like I just have good memories of guys when they get a good contract, when they get a new contractor, whatever it is, how exciting that is as a coach for them as well.
So any time you're going through -- you have to go through so many ups and downs in the season like when you have an opportunity like that to celebrate something cool with them, that's cool.
Q. How did Jalen take the news when you told him he couldn't go Saturday?
NICK SIRIANNI: You know, obviously he's disappointed because he wants to play. Again, like I said, he is the toughest guy I know, and we have to do what's best as the organization to put him in a safe spot, because he would play through anything. He showed that in that fourth quarter against Chicago, that he did play through it. He played through everything.
Obviously disappointed. Wants to be out there with his teammates, but these are hard conversations you have to have sometimes.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports