Q. Matt, how difficult is it to kind of take over calling a defense when it's been installed obviously before the season started and it's basically somebody else's defense?
MATT PATRICIA: Yeah, you know, I think the great part about it was just going back to the spring when I had the opportunity to come here. Thankfully Nick extended that opportunity to me. Coach Sirianni has been amazing for me to be around and this program that obviously Mr. Lurie and Howie have built here.
For me it's been such a privilege coming into the building and really being in a role where I was in a lot of different areas at the time, being able to help a little bit with offense with some experiences there and special teams, which I love that part of it.
Then defensively, you know, being around those great coaches and Sean who's phenomenal and putting the installation of defense in. Learning. For me it was a great learning opportunity at that point.
So just kind of being involved with the coaches I think it's always collaborative. We meet and talk and have different ideas and thoughts. Certainly like I said, it was a great opportunity for me it kind of learn the defense that Sean was building.
Really it's the Eagles' defense. It's the 2023 Eagles. That's what we're trying to develop. Every year in football things change a little bit and schemes change based on people and personnel you have. I think that's what we been trying to do through the course of the year.
So it was just good for me. I was kind of already in the mix with these guys trying to offer help and experience when I could in certain situations that maybe I've been around.
So I think from that aspect of it, it's a great collaborative effort. I think with everybody. There is great coaches. Coaches that have been here, new coaches that came in. Coach Rocker and Coach Wash and those guys that were here, and DK. To be able to bridge some of the stuff previous and build this year's Eagles defense is what it's about.
That's where we are. We've had a little bit of a change of maybe roles or responsibilities, but it's still I would say a huge collaborative group. Sean is a tremendous, tremendous football coach. He's super intelligent with scheme and teaching and I've learned a lot from him.
And tried to offer some insight into different things I've seen through the years. So we're all still kind of trying to just work together and make it a group effort.
Q. How do you know when it's enough to change? Not enough to change?
MATT PATRICIA: Yeah.
Q. You can't change everything.
MATT PATRICIA: Yeah, great question. I think it's really -- I think defenses and football evolve every week based on who you play and the schemes and the problems that the offense presents.
That's one of the things that for me that I always look at. I say this all the time, sometimes it's more like the NBA than anything else. It's matchups and people. We have been evolving through the course of this season in different areas and different ways trying to maximize what we do each and every single week.
I think you still have to evolve and have some of that and do things that fit the players that you have that particular week, but certainly you want to keep the foundation of what you spend a lot of time on.
A lot of times, try to just let the talent shine that we have on the field, which is great. We have great players, great coaches.
Really just excited watching them play and learn, get to know them and be around guys like Fletcher Cox, who I have the utmost respect for and I remember coming out in the draft, I loved him then. I was like, let me get my hands on this guy.
And a lot of those guys like that.
So just being around tremendous people like that, that's what I think makes -- that's what as coaches makes us better. I've been blessed to be around a lot of great players and there is great players here. I'm trying to learn as much as I can from all of them and then you to figure out what they do well and how they impact a game and get a match up in a game that helps you win in those situations.
So you try to find that balance.
Q. You mentioned the collaborative process. How much have your imprint can you put on this game this late in the season?
MATT PATRICIA: Again, it's really our imprint. I don't think through the course of my years in defense, offense, whatever it is, that I've ever really felt like it's mine, you know. I think it's the players. I think the beauty of it and the way the NFL works through the years that I've been in it, it changes every year, you know.
I think you have to be able to identify what you do well and then try to emphasize that and then what are areas that I think we can get better at and try to emphasize those. Sometimes it takes a little while; sometimes you build on it.
But I don't think there is any one great playbook that just comes in and is like, here you go. This is the one that's going to do it all all the time. I think everyone would do that.
The art of it is trying to adapt what you think helps your players the best to give them a chance to go play fast and aggressive and give them a chance to win. That's what we're trying to do as a group. Hey, where are we really good or what do we need to add or what are we missing and grow that through the weeks.
Q. Matt, how did the switch happen?
MATT PATRICIA: As far as?
Q. How did Nick come to you and make the change?
MATT PATRICIA: I'll probably leave the conversations -- Nick can handle those. I think Nick is -- look, as a head coach you're just trying to do everything you can to give yourself the best chance to maximize everybody in the building. I'm certainly very blessed that I'm here. I'm honored that he allowed me to be in the building.
Honored that Sean has been so great and been able to learn from him. He's a huge part of everything still now, so it's -- there may have been a little bit of a switch in some of the responsibilities, but I feel like it's still a group effort. We go in the room and talk about different areas of the game and what teams are going to do. We talk about what do our players do well.
So it's a huge open dialog all the time between everybody, so I think it's just a little bit of a shift in that aspect.
Q. How did the interactions work with you and Sean during the game?
MATT PATRICIA: Yeah, it was great. Yeah, again, just depending on where you are on the field, really cool. Like I wish sometimes we -- if you guys ever sat in the box during a game, there is so much information that comes from upstairs and really on the field. I've always looked at those are your eyes in the sky. It's got to happen live, got to happen in time.
Those suggestions are always free flowing. That is why we're always on the line together with the headsets. You know, they may see something in up top and, hey, look, this is happening or see this over here. You're trying to communicate to the players on the field at the same time.
So when I was upstairs I was trying to do the same thing with Sean downstairs, and he did a great job really helping me through the game with some of the stuff he was seeing. There are other coaches up there that are doing the same thing, whether it's the guys giving you personnel or seeing different things in the run game, pass game, and really what you try to do is you take the on-field eyes and cross reference it with the eyes up in the sky, and then obviously now we have the tablets which is great.
Used to have the pages back in the day and trying to figure everything out, okay, hey, what happened here and what was good. What are they doing. What's their game plan.
So when you're in certain situations in the game being some of that is live feed. You're getting all that information and trying to communicate that to the players on the field to see if you can help them.
Sometimes you can get it in time; sometimes you can't and get it corrected when you come to the sideline.
But that communication upstairs/downstairs is critical. It's really I think one the cooler things that we do that probably you don't see. I know they got cameras in the box now but think about the information coming down at halftime. I'm going out at halftime and we're trying to make adjustments and Sean is coming in the locker room and, hey, this is, this is going on and other coach address from that collaborative group.
You've only got so much time to do it because you got to get back on the field. That whole race is really cool.
Q. You talk about the collaboration with Sean specific to the secondary. What were some of the things that you could do in this role that you couldn't before and Sean and what he supplies for this game here and what are some of the things you guys already started to change that you couldn't have done in your previous role?
MATT PATRICIA: Previous role here?
Q. Yes.
MATT PATRICIA: You know, I never felt like at all in any of the roles -- I think everybody is really working with great people. Really great people. So never felt like there was not a suggestion or thought or conversation that couldn't happen from that aspect of it.
I think it's just free flowing back and forth between all the coaches. I fully understand in certain roles, whatever it is, you might have an idea you think is really good and may not make it in. That's fine. It is what it is. But you go through that process to make sure you're doing everything you can.
It gets to a point in the week where there is like a lot of information we feed these guys and a lot of stuff they have to learn. Early downs, that's today; third down tomorrow; red area the next day; two-minute will be on top of that.
Sometimes you get towards the end the of week depending on the game plan and the time you have to prepare to install, whether it's a short week or long week. Sometimes you get to the end and say, you know what? I don't think this is really going to make it in the game plan this week.
Sometimes you take that information and vet it through and say, okay, this may be something we can get to in the game. Sometimes you have good ideas or thoughts that you don't get to practice but maybe it's a foundational call that you have that sometimes is easier to install in the game because less variables. You kind of know with the plays are, what the tips are from the looks you get from the opponent.
So you try to keep those ideas fluid, too.
Q. From a self-correction standpoint on that last drive...
MATT PATRICIA: Yeah, I mean, obviously I would take it all back. That drive starts with me and I got to do a better job to get them in position to get us off the field and obviously help us win.
I think our guys played really, really hard. I was really proud of the way they went out and give praise to them for what they did. Tried to play aggressive. Tried to play physical up front. Covered really well. Obviously in the two-minute drive wasn't good enough. That's me.
I got to get some things in there, calls in there, whatever it may be, to help them a little bit more so they can go out -- and obviously give them credit, too. They made a great play, too. They're a good football team.
But I got just do a better job.
Q. Why did you like the call on the game on the game-winning touchdown?
MATT PATRICIA: Why did I like it? Hindsight I don't really like it very much right now. It didn't work out.
Q. At the time.
MATT PATRICIA: Yeah, I think during the course of that drive, probably a couple plays in there and calls and coverages, things that were mixed in that you look at and you're like, okay, this was good.
Then maybe a play, two before that there was a call that maybe on that last play would've been better, but the play before that I saw something that made me nervous about calling it again. Maybe there was another space or another opportunity for them in there to make a big play, so moved away from that call.
Went to another call to try to give help other places. You know, obviously wish I hadn't. Wish I had another call in that situation to be able to help and really in the situation on the field where we were. A lot of it too, trying to gauge the clock and how much time was going by. That changes some things as you go and what they can do. It limits as the time goes down and have to start elongating.
They still had some time. They had the right play on for that situation.
Q. How did you handle things from a personal standpoint when it came to Sean? It's a tough situation. What was your messaging to him?
MATT PATRICIA: Yeah, you know, what I love about football and what I love about coaching and one of the reasons I got into coaching is because of the relationships. That's what is really important in just my story and where I came from. Left the business world get into coaching. Played football. Love football. Love the relationships I have from football. I loved the coaches that I had.
My parents were teachers and I saw how they impacted kids and young people. So that's why I left and I got into coaching. You know, honestly, I think this has been great for me coming here, coming to this organization, Nick, the culture he has here. To be able to get back to that.
I think it's a very competitive business. It is what it is. The NFL is about production and we have to produce. We understand that. When you're in it for a long time, which somehow I'm now the old guy. I don't know how it happened but it happened quick. You get caught up in the rest of it. You're trying to produce and win. We're all trying to do that.
To me it's the relationships, whether it's the relationships with the players or coaches, I hold a lot of value in that. You know, when the game is done and we're all not with the game anymore, it's the relationships that will stay.
I think I've been really blessed Sean to have a relationship and build a friendship. We've had mutual friends we worked with and have that connection to each other. He's been great. Really helped me transitioning here in a situation where my family is not here. I'm kind of here by myself and he's looked out for me.
In those situations, the first thing for me whether it's -- whatever it is, you pack all the rest of it away and talk as friends. Most important thing is that everybody is okay. That's the most important thing.
In the end that's all that matters. Then at that point, once you make sure and you check in and say, okay, well then, on the other side, how do we go forward and what's the best plan. You sit down and just try to figure it out.
Q. (Regarding Darius Slay.) What do you do to reconcile that.
MATT PATRICIA: Man, just gave him a big hug before I came in here, too. It's been awesome for me to be back around Slay and really have an unbelievable relationship. He's a great guy. He's super kind, super funny, very determined. He's everything that he is.
Obviously just so appreciative of him and our conversations that we had in the spring and just helping me. Honestly, he's helped me a lot. In the spring, you know, just getting acclimated and just talking through, honestly he's one of the guys I knew coming in the building.
You know how it is when you go to a new place, you gravitate towards the ones you know. He's out there with arms open and helped me fit in and feel comfortable. I'm really very grateful to him for that.
As you go through life and you grow and learn and hopefully improve and get better as a person, from me personally, where I was whenever that was, I'm just trying to be a better person every day. I'm just really thankful to him for that.
Then, you know being you roll into the seen and you play football and talking technique. We were out there post-practice one day and he was working on some man-to-man techniques and footwork with the young guys and I was watching, and we were just kind of talking about techniques, and you get back into the football fundamentals of it, which he's super great at.
That was fun. You're back coaching and teaching, and couple things we were talking about, which was really cool.
And then getting into the season and he obviously knew maybe the first game of the year so it was going to be tough for me. He was there and made sure I was okay and that was awesome. That was awesome.
So I think, look, everybody tries to grow as people and sit down and come together and go forward. That's what's been really, really awesome and cool about it. I love that. I don't think all of us are ever our most perfect selves our entire lives. I don't think that has ever happened.
So it's good for me to be able to come back and build some of those relationships the way that you want them.
Q. Throughout your time in the NFL what have you learned about yourself as a playcaller and throughout this year when you weren't in that role were you taking mental reps to get ready for that?
MATT PATRICIA: Yeah, good question. Playcaller is probably a longer one, trying to decide there. I've kind of morphed throughout the year depending on the stage of my career. Better playcaller at times than not. I think sometimes with the playcaller part of it you go to different experiences that you've had in those situations.
Sometimes in the moment there is different instincts that kick in, like I'm feeling this. A lot of that happens in-game, probably because of something that experience has taught you, usually in a negative way in the previous years.
You try to draw on those as much as you can. All we do to get ready to call the game is do the best we can to put the players in the right situations to be able to go play fast and aggressive. I think when you don't do that as a coach that's where you feel the worst, really horrible that I didn't give that person a chance to be successful on this play.
Any of those opportunities that I've had where I didn't do that I really try it make sure I take good notes and that doesn't happen again. I don't want to do that.
This year has been really cool. When I got here, being able to be in a lot of different areas. Help on offenses which was you fourth down. Coach Stoutland and I go way bay back to Syracuse days. That was great. Being around him and his family again, and helping on special teams and sitting in those meetings.
That's fun.
Defensively it's been great for me just to listen, listen and watch coaches. I would say probably in more of my more recent years been around and watched a lot of great young coaches come through and tried to help them and do whatever I can to maybe guide or give them any sort of advice that I may have.
That's been really cool for me. And even with Coach Sirianni and things that he's dealing with. Hey, I'm here if you need me as a sounding board. I really enjoy those roles, that part of it now in my career. Kind of just, hey, I have a bunch of knowledge. I have a bunch of experience, wisdom. If you want any of it it's here before I'm not doing this anymore.
So I just want to try to share as much of that as I can. I might as well that's what everyone helped me with. I think everyone helps you at some point.
Q. Nick always tells us about his role as a CEO, coach with a defense. As an offensive-minded guy he says he has a couple demands but he hires people to do that job. How does that relationship work now that you're in the position you're in?
MATT PATRICIA: Yeah, good one there, too. You know, it's crazy thinking about this. I've worked for two head coaches and been in the league like 20 years. This is the first time with an offensive head coach, which is cool for me. I'm learning a lot from him, not only Nick as the head coach, but Nick and how he handles all the different areas and the offense too.
So he's the head coach. His vision of the team is what I'm -- it's our job as coaches to try to go fulfill. Whatever he sees that to be.
He's very, very smart. Coach Sirianni has been doing this for a long time. Great mind for the game. We talk a lot about situational football together and what he sees and he'll ask what I see. I think that collaborative conversation is really awesome. You grow a lot from that.
But there are certain things that he as a head coach, if he wants and that's the way he sees it, that's what we do. There is not really -- you have a conversation, but in the end he's the head coach. That's who we work for. That's the vision we have to fulfill. It usually comes for all of us in those situations, probably something that transpired that we all have our scars from games that have happened.
You know, he may have been in a situation and, hey, I just don't want that to happen again. We'll figure out the rest of it. I completely understand that totally.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports