Nick Sirianni talks Eagles offensive performance against the Bucs

The Eagles looked better in their Week 3 win over the Bucs, but head coach Nick Sirianni explained after the game that they’re still not playing their best football — but pointed out that at this point in the season, they shouldn’t be. It’s all a growth process and will come with time.

“I thought we played a really good game on the O-line, D-line, being physical against a physical group. That’s a good defense. That’s a good offensive line.

So I just felt like we came away just really playing our game, and we want to be tough and together. Part of toughness is being physical and that is what I felt like really stood out to this game.”

Here’s what else the head coach had to say:

On the offensive performance

Sirianni said that he doesn’t agree that the passing game hasn’t taken off yet, noting that when they’re running the ball well and have a big lead like they did, of course they’re not going to utilize the passing game as much. The head coach said that the box score is only going to show so much, but he would consider them a balanced offense right now.

As for the run game, Siriainni called D’Andre Swift super elusive, and said that they haven’t even had to utilize him and his ability catching the football, too. The RB is a weapon in a variety of plays, and he’s explosive and tough.

The head coach also talked about how great the offensive line is and has been, and how being able to run at such a high level consistently is a direct result of that. He noted that it’s a very special group, anchored by Jason Kelce and Lane Johnson who have played together in Philly for over a decade, and has really developed with Jordan Mailata, Landon Dickerson, and Cam Jurgens. Sirianni gave Howie Roseman credit for always taking care of the depth up front.

On Jalen Hurts’ performance

Sirianni acknowledged that the QB would want those two interceptions back, but overall played a good game.

“I thought the guy made a really good play on the second interception, just being on the same page on the first interception. It’s always about communication, and being on the same page.

I thought he took completions that were being given to him, spread the ball around — A.J. [Brown] had it. A.J. had a really good game. Dallas [Goedert], I thought, made some really key catches. DeVonta [Smith] had some big catches.

And so, I thought [Hurts] did a good job at managing the game, and playing a good game.”

On getting the ball to A.J. Brown

The head coach said that they’re always trying to get the ball to Brown, and to DeVonta Smith and Dallas Goedert, too. And while it may seem like Brown was more involved this week after his sideline frustration in Week 2, Sirianni said that they were taking what the defense was giving them — including one-on-ones on the outside.

They started the game with a few passes to Brown, and Sirianni credited OC Brian Johnson for getting to the check on the second and third plays of the game.

“We’re always going to want to get A.J. [Brown] involved, it just so happened that he had the first couple catches of the game.”

On the dynamic defense

Sirianni was asked if he expected the Eagles defense to be this good, especially considering some of the roster and staff turnover, in addition to injuries.

“I really had a lot of confidence in our defense, and we hired Sean [Desai] because we had a lot of confidence in him, and he’s done a nice job.

The head coach went on to say that he thinks they are playing with really good fundamentals and are playing physical.

“I think we’re doing a nice job tackling. I think they’re doing a really good job.”

He elaborated on how much they emphasize fundamentals, and credited the players with really buying in and doing the extra work that’s needed to get them right.

Sirianni later talked about the confidence they had in Sydney Brown taking snaps in the slot, explaining that’s the type of player the rookie is and the talent he showed on special teams early this season.