Nick Sirianni was extremely animated during and after his team’s win over the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday night, and one Philadelphia Eagles player said there was more to the enthusiasm than just typical rivalry game emotions.
A scuffle broke out near the end of the Eagles’ 26-17 win, and Sirianni did not exactly try to de-escalate the situation. Instead, the second-year coach was seen screaming at the Dallas sideline. According to veteran defensive end Brandon Graham, Sirianni was letting the Cowboys know what he thought of them after some players talked trash to the coach last season.
Graham told the 94WIP Morning Show on Tuesday that some Cowboys players told Sirianni last year that he does not belong on the same field as his division rival.
“He said the last time we lost to them last year (51-26 on January 8th, 2022) he said a couple (Cowboys) players came up to him and said, ‘Y'all don’t belong on this field with us,’ and all this stuff (like), ‘We the NFC East,”‘ Graham revealed. “So it was cool to kind of hear that to know it was building up for this moment so that was probably part of why he was going off too.”
Sirianni was a guest on the same show less than an hour later. He was asked about Graham’s story, and he danced around the topic.
“There are so many things that go on during the game. I do have a lot of respect for that team and those players on that team,” Sirianni said. “They’ve got really good players and they’re going to be good this year, I know that.”
One thing is for certain: Sirianni was more fired up for the win over Dallas than any other in his young coaching career. He even trolled the Cowboys with a classic chant on his way to the locker room (video here). We would not be surprised if there was some trash talk from last year that he held onto.
More must-reads: