Q. Do you have any additional information on where things stand with Jalen, any context?
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, he's progressing through the protocol.
Q. No long-term concern there?
NICK SIRIANNI: He's progressing through the protocol. Can't say much more when guys are in the protocol except for that.
Q. ...he would be resting anyway?
NICK SIRIANNI: I'm sorry?
Q. The protocol, like you have to recover from practice, is the fact that he would be resting from practice anyway related to him still being in the protocol?
NICK SIRIANNI: Guys. Yeah, -- okay. He's progressing through the protocol. Not much more I have for you on that, guys.
Q. How's Dallas look?
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, had a good week. He's had a good week. Good to get him back out there. He's a heck of a football player. We need him to accomplish the goals that we want to accomplish, and he's had a really good week.
Q. What are your expectations for Tanner and Ian if they're the quarterbacks to play this Friday? What's your expectations for them?
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, want to continue to get better each and every day. That's been our mission this entire week for guys that are going to be playing in this game and guys that aren't going to be playing in this game. How do we progress? How do we get better?
So we're going through the week just like we would every other week, and I expect guys to go out there and perform and play to the standard that we have set here.
Q. How valuable of an opportunity is it to see a lot of these guys who don't play a lot during the regular season in real live game action?
NICK SIRIANNI: I think very much so. Every time they were out there on the field being evaluated, we put a lot of the stock obviously in how we practice, with the tempo we practice with, and the intensity that we practice with, so we feel like we get great looks there.
But, you know, when you go out there and you're tackling to the ground, it's full speed -- it's always full speed but where it's live, obviously that's a little different. Great evaluation process for us on different guys.
Q. Because this is a big developmental week, can you give us some insight into what Connor has meant to that program and what he's done for your staff?
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, he's been outstanding. Really always enjoyed by interactions with him. Have a lot of interactions with him. Gives me great perspective of different things.
I lean on him a lot on different things of, hey, as a former player. I do the same thing with Aaron Moorehead, tapping into that. What would you think here? It's good having that perspective, and Connor is so committed to how do we continue to help guys get better, which speaks the same language as I do.
That's why we have so many good conversations about it. Really value his opinion. Really value his insight. Really value him in this organization.
Q. The developmental periods you talk about, where did that idea come from?
NICK SIRIANNI: We did that some in Indy. Frank, that was big with Frank. They had done that before I got here as well, so it was good when we meshed those things together.
It's just so important. Again, these guys can't get enough -- when you're on the scout team and you're not getting a lot of the reps with the starters, then you don't rep your plays, right? You're doing what a card says.
It's a lot different running a play when you hear it in the huddle and have to go process it and go do it, one of our plays, as opposed to looking at a card and say, do this. It's just different.
So we got to try to put them in positions to develop. Like I've said to you guys, one thing I learned really early on, it was in college, but was recruit, retain, develop. Very early on from Coach Kehres.
In the NFL that's the same deal, right? Scouting takes the place of recruiting, and Howie and his staff do a great job of that, as you can see by our roster.
Then our job is to develop them into players that they're capable of being. That's their job as well. That's why you look for certain things that really matter to the development.
And so you just try to continue to find ways to do different things to develop them, from extra meetings. Don't want to give away everything we do, but another thing we do is every Friday or Saturday, it's to the discretion of the position, coach there is an extra meeting also with just the scout team player to go through your reps at practice as well, both from the scout team and the developmental periods.
Q. There has been some context to what Saquon has been able to do this year. When you and Kellen first got together and started building the offense, in your talks with the Eagles, with Howie looking for running backs, is that what you wanted to do or how much change...
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, he can do everything. Everything. Like he has every tool that you look for in running backs, and so you know, just yeah, he's special. You guys see it. And so you got really open season on everything there in your playbook. Anything you've done, anything you thought about doing, anything you look at and say, man, could Saquon do this? The answer is yes mostly. Not mostly, always. Hey, he would be really good at this.
I think we come away from those conversations and we look through our tape and watch a certain play that we might be considering putting in, you know, it's funny, we say, hey, this would be good for Saquon and laugh like, well, everything is probably going to be good for Saquon.
So, yeah, he's just a phenomenal teammate, phenomenal player.
Q. In speeches this year, the phrase you keep using is "do special shit." Is there a back story for why you honed in on that message this year?
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, what we've talked about is we won ten plus games the last three years, and that's good. We're excited about that.
But the extra stuff, extra things are how do you special things. Just honing on, hey what are the -- it's do special stuff, right? But it's the things that require -- what are the things you have to do to win special things and do special things.
That's the commitment to connecting as a football team. That's the detail. That's the detail. That's the toughness. We talk about that over and over again because that's the common denominator. Those are the common denominators of good football teams, and our goals are to do special things and special stuff.
So that's our commitment to our standard of what we want to continue to get better at. Yeah, I think we've had a lot of success. It is, it's awesome to win the division, but our goals are higher than just getting in the playoffs or winning a division.
We have our goals set on a higher goal. You know, that still doesn't mean you don't take it one week at a time. The moment you start looking up -- the higher you climb on the mountain, the moment you start looking up you start to slip.
Our goals are to stay focused where we are and know our guys are higher than the cool things we've been able to do so far this season.
Q. When you think about all you accomplished this year is there somebody, maybe player, coach, someone in the building that maybe doesn't get -- no one knows about, is unheralded that you think about really contributed to the success of this season?
NICK SIRIANNI: Man, there are so many people, because it is hard to spread the love to the outside of guys. I feel like --
Q. Opportunity to give it to one person.
NICK SIRIANNI: And I don't think that's fair because there are so many that are able to do it. You know, there are so many coaches. Kellen had a great year coaching. Vic had a great coach. Clay has had a great year coaching. Those are our coordinators, right?
I think about the job that Clint Hurtt has done. Jeremiah Washburn, and, again, Jemal Singleton, all the guys. I'm going to feel bad that I'm not going to say everybody. Kevin Patullo has been awesome this year.
I think about the guys that maybe aren't as recognized, but look at all the good things that Grant Calcaterra has done this season. Look at the development of Nolan Smith from this season of all the things that he does, and Josh Sweat.
You know, they do so much of the dirty work that's not rocked that we sure as heck recognize it. And so there is a ton of those people on our team, both in the building and on staff. I gave a couple. Didn't want to, but I gave a couple because I do like that they get recognized. Obviously I just can't recognize everybody that deserves to be recognized, but I appreciate the question.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports