Nick Sirianni is widely known for his brash and lively energy on the Eagles sidelines, but his latest outburst on Sunday did not sit well with some in the organization.
Sirianni had a back-and-forth moment with fans behind the Eagles bench in the closing minutes of their win over the Browns at Lincoln Financial Field.
While the Eagles coach said Sunday that he was just “having fun” with the fans, two Eagles executives called the moment “embarrassing,” the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.
However, two others gave their support to the coach, especially when considering how Philadelphia fans can be plenty vocal toward their home team.
On Monday, Sirianni apologized for the heated exchange.
“I’m sorry and disappointed on how my energy was directed at the end of the game,” he said in a news conference on Monday. “My energy should be all in on coaching, motivating, and celebrating with our guys and I need to have better wisdom and discernment on when to use that energy and that wasn’t the time.”
A fan purporting to be the one yelling toward Sirianni — and offensive coordinator Kellen Moore — took to Reddit, claiming he yelled at the Eagles staff after one offensive series that ended in a punt.
The user claiming to be the fan said they were angry over the team not using running back Saquon Barkley more on that particular series, and as the game wound down, Sirianni apparently told the fan that they did, in fact, use Barkley in the end.
“It was actually awesome!” the user wrote.
Whether that’s how things actually shook out or not, the Eagles likely want to see fewer interactions like that from Sirianni, especially after owner Jeffrey Lurie previously told the coach — per the Inquirer — that the coach needs to find a “sweet spot” in terms of energy and keeping things composed.
The Eagles next head to the Meadowlands to take on the rival Giants on Sunday, making it Barkley’s first trip back to his old home.