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Eagles 17, Colts 16
Q. Really great today.
NICK SIRIANNI: Oh, man it was a great win. It wasn't what you draw up or anything like that, but in this league, it rarely is. It's tough sledding.
Just a great win to be able to get that.
Q. BG was saying that you were pretty emotional afterwards. He thought it was tied to your return here. What are you feeling now that it's over?
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, you know, I'm emotional because I love Frank Reich. I really do. He's one of the best damn football coaches I've ever been around. Yeah, I was hoping him and I would be able to coach against each other in this game, but he is one my of biggest mentors. I got my dad, Larry Kehres, and Frank Reich, and he's such a good football coach.
Yeah, you don't want to know what I think if he should be here or not. You guys can probably imagine what I really think.
I love him and so I got a little bit emotional about that/ it was good to see the guys that I really cared about and some of the things that Quinton Nelson and Ryan Kelly and Parris Campbell. Talked to them after the game, and Kenny Moore. So that means a lot when they say some that things are -- obviously I'll keep those things to myself, but spent a lot of time here. One of my children was born here.
It was sweet to come here, especially with what happened in this organization the last couple weeks and get the win. A win. We leave Indianapolis with a win.
Q. Despite the win, there was some struggles early on.
NICK SIRIANNI: You ain't kidding, Jeff.
Q. Some of the decisions, just wondering, so you had three timeouts you went into the half with.
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah. I didn't feel great about how we were moving it. I didn't want to help them out because they had -- I just didn't want to help them out anymore with the timeouts. You know, hey, if we lost that game and I didn't do it, I probably would've said, hey, shouldn't have done that. We won and I felt good about the decision then.
Not because -- I have faith in our offense to be able to do that, I just didn't want to help them go down and score a touchdown and kick a field goal there because they lacked timeouts. Our defense was doing a good job at that time. You go back and forth. That's what I'm going to do, go back and forth with that decision.
Was it the right, was it the wrong one. Shoot, I got to stick with my -- I don't want to say gut, stick with my conviction when I make a decision and live with it. Not always are they going to be right.
Q. Fourth and ten, on the 39 you passed...
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, you know, with where we were, right now, it's about -- you know, did I feel great about kicking that right there? I didn't, and I wanted to see if we could get the first down right there. We didn't.
Man, I can't say enough good things about Gus Bradley and his defense. That guy always gets his players to play for him. Always. Gus always gets his players -- I was with him in San Diego, as you guys know, and he always gets his players to play for him.
They always do a go job on defense. They stopped us there, and, again, I have to stick with the decision I made. Hindsight, if I kick it, maybe it didn't work for this one.
Q. Is it fair to say you simplified things offensively in the second half?
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah. We got to what we felt was working at the time. It still wasn't easy, as you guys saw, right? They came out and had a strip sack fumble and got the ball back. That No. 91, been a lot of the battles with him. He's a good football player.
In this stadium when he was with Jacksonville, then he found his way to Minnesota and he was here -- like we've had a lot of nights worrying about him, but I love our tackles, and it wasn't on our tackle. Ended up being on the back.
But he's a good football player. Made a good play there. Good job by Shane calling it in the second half, making Stout making some adjustments, all the guys making some adjustments, and defense allowed us time to be able to do that.
Q. The final drive, take us through that and then the play calling process, and also the timeout after the two-minute warning call.
NICK SIRIANNI: Well, there is a little bit of strategy to that timeout after the two-minute call that I would rather not got into for reasons -- just so our opponents don't know obviously.
But that was a big time drive. Miles Sanders looked at me and said, hey, I'm on the teach tape, because when we talk about if you're behind the defense, right, and you're running and the ball is a little under thrown because Jalen had to really heave it, plant your right foot in the ground and come back and kind of make sure that you're either coming back to the football, jumping through the football, and he did exactly that.
Like you don't think that Miles is going to be on the go-route off a scramble on that, because these conversations are happening, and that's why I love the process, because the running backs and the receivers and the tight ends and the quarterbacks are all sitting in together with the pass installs in the pass meetings, and there is always in my head, like, hey, should we let the backs go here?
But, shoot, it worked out for us today that he soaked up a coaching point and played it to perfection. We can give all the coaching points we want, but these players are the ones that got to go out and execute it.
He said to me a couple times after the game, I make the teach tape? I said, you're damn right you made the teach tape. Forevermore we'll be able to show Miles Sanders how to play a deep ball if it's under thrown. You got to put your guys in every position like that. That was a huge, huge play. I'm talking a lot. I know. Go ahead.
Q. I hate it interrupt, but really leaned on Hurts on the last drive, that fourth and two, quarterback draw. Then the thing just opened up wide on the third and 7 there, third and goal. Was there something you saw on calling that play?
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah. Obviously you go through the process all week and figure out what they're doing, and not only in the red zone, in the tight red zone, in the low red zone, in the high red zone, two minute, what their got-to-have-it calls are, what they're going to play. You try to put yourself in every single position you possibly can.
You know, and then you put the ball in your player's hands that you trust to make the plays at that time. I think you keep seeing it, when we need a drive, need some points, we can always lean on our offensive line. You can always lean on them.
Jalen is special with the ball in his hands, and, man, that thing opened up. I really was looking at the play and then I kind of looked over at Kevin, and Kevin Patullo was going crazy because I kind of put my head down just for a second, and then he executed and we scored and it was pretty sweet.
We knew we had to get a stop. Man, those defensive ends earned the right to pass rush in that scenario, and we got a great pass rush and we got a great defense. As you guys see, I'm excited about this win.
Q. Speak to the run defense, especially coming off all the criticism they had throughout this week?
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, it's not -- as we all know, sometimes I feel like we don't all know this, that it's not indicative of just one game of who you are, right? The defensive coaches did an unbelievable job. The defensive players did an unbelievable job.
I've been in this stadium when those offensive linemen over there, Quenton Nelson, Ryan Kelly have taken over a game. That's a good offensive line. Jonathan Taylor is a good back. There was not much there. You know, there was not much there at all.
It was awesome, right? It was awesome. Interested to see what the narrative is. I don't know if it'll be, well, like they're still 31st in yards per attempt. I'm not sure we are anymore.
Obviously Linval did a great job. It was awesome to see him com in and get reps. When he comes off the field excited I get excited. So I love that juice.
Suh did a good job. Tracy Rocker our defensive line coach, to get those guys ready to play in that short amount of time is a tribute to Coach Rocker and a tribute to Suh and Linval that they were able do it.
Obviously so appreciative to Howie and his staff for getting those guys in here. They went out there and just played. I can't wait to see what their grades were. I am imagining they were pretty good.
Yeah, when they come off the field it's exciting.
Q. Do you feel like this is important for a team to build toughness?
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, I think so. Any win you take it any way you can get it in this league, especially on the road. We clawed and scratched and fought and kept going. We won at the end.
I think any time your back is against the wall, right, and you respond at all levels, offense, defense, special teams, yeah, it feels pretty sweet and it builds. You can build from anything. I think there was a great Kobe Bryant, he would always talk about his process after a game and how you could build on everything.
He was awesome. You can build on everything. You would rather build off a win, but when your back is against the wall like our guys' were today and you fight and claw and scratch, anything you got to do to win that game, that's pretty sweet and brings those guys closer and closer.
I would love to win by more than that obviously. We had our back against the wall and we came out swinging and we got the win.
Fastscripts by ASAP Sports...
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports