Three NFL coaches carry the first branches of Nick Sirianni's coaching tree
Sometimes, it's good to be wrong. Well, maybe 'wrong' isn't the correct word choice. We'll say this. We all had reservations about Nick Sirianni at some point.
If you claim you didn't feel this way, you may be misleading yourself. However, he has earned the trust of the Philadelphia Eagles fans—or at least he should have. When we reconsider the situation from that perspective, it seems we judged him incorrectly, and honestly, we're glad we did. Sometimes, being 'wrong' can be a satisfying experience.
It wasn't that there were significant reasons to doubt him. He proved he could win immediately. His players worked hard for him, but there were also times when he scared the bejesus out of us.
Frankly, none of us have ever seen Andy Reid or Bill Belichick mix it up with fans on the sideline, so it bothered us that Coach Sirianni did it. Plus, no one knew how the 'CEO head coach' idea would work. The collapse to conclude the 2023-24 season was downright horrifying.
As it turns out, Philadelphia knew what was best, and the rest of us didn't. Who would have thought, huh? It's amazing how things work out sometimes.
Nick Sirianni and Dan Campbell are the sole survivors of the 2021 seven-man NFL head coaching hiring cycle. Sirianni, just three years in, has won over 71% of his games. He has won in six of his nine playoff game appearances.
He has also won a Super Bowl after appearing in two. If we were talking about anyone else, we'd be screaming they were on a Pro Football Hall of Fame trajectory. Why aren't we saying that about the Eagles leader? And, has anyone noticed? Now he has a coaching tree!
Checking in on Nick Sirianni's former assistants in their current roles as NFL head coaches
That flower in bloom took root. Philadelphia hasn't lost very often since Nick confused us with one of his earlier metaphors. Now, we long for them. Flowers and roots... Cool... What else do you have, Coach? How about a warning involving 'perfume' and 'poison'?
It's hard to believe that this is already year five of the Nick Sirianni/Jalen Hurts era in the City of Brotherly Love. How about a look at what some of his former assistants are doing?
We'll never know whether Jonathan Gannon's ticket to Glendale for Super Bowl 57 was a one-way purchase, but we do know he never returned to Philadelphia after the game's ending. Some will tell the story of the 2022-23 Eagles and state he was one of the game's goats (and, we don't mean 'G.O.A.T.' in the complimentary sense).
Coach Gannon accepted the role of Arizona Cardinals head coach two days after losing the big game on February 14, 2023. He has since returned to Philadelphia and beaten his former squad in a surprise 35-31 upset during the aforementioned 2023 Eagles collapse.
It was one of the few highlights of Gannon's 4-13 debut. He is now 12-22 following two seasons and has yet to lead his team to the postseason. He enters the 2025 campaign on the hot seat, and for all intents and purposes, it doesn't seem in the cards that he'll reach the playoffs in year three. Things aren't looking good for the former Eagles defensive coordinator. Grade: D
Like Gannon, Shane Steichen was part of Coach Sirianni's inaugural coaching staff, serving as the offensive coordinator for two seasons. During that time, he helped Jalen Hurts to a near-MVP season, and had the quarterback been healthy for the entire campaign, one could have made reasonable arguments that Hurts would have won.
Steichen now leads the Indianapolis Colts, where he is .500 as their leader with an average 17-17 record. There are three issues. First, he hitched his wagon to then-rookie Anthony Richardson. Second, Richardson wasn't great when returning last season.
Third, the rest of his team isn't very good either, and they have yet to reach the postseason under his guidance. It is hard, however, to deny that the Colts seem to be improving slowly under his guidance. Grade: C
He also enters the coming season on the hot seat, but there isn't much to be excited about here, as the AFC is loaded with so many great contenders.
Kellen Moore is likely the Sirianni disciple with the best chance of succeeding. That says a lot, as he didn't inherit much from the last New Orleans Saints regime.
Moore is the most talented leader of this bunch, but he has a lot of work to do. We'll give him a vote of confidence, considering he's in a weak division with only the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to worry about.
Take that how you will. Honestly, some of our opinions are slanted as the Saints voted in favor of keeping the 'Tush Push' alive, and we're thankful we haven't seen Coach Moore wear a bucket hat similar to the one Gannon wore at Cardinals minicamp. Grade: Incomplete
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Miami Herald
8 minutes ago
- Miami Herald
Bryan Braman spent his final moments with his daughters before dying of cancer
Bryan Braman was surrounded by those he loved most in the weeks leading up to his death. The 38-year-old former NFL player, who won his first and only Super Bowl with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2018, died on Thursday, July 17, due to 'a rare, aggressive form of cancer,' according to ESPN. Braman's agent, Sean Stellato, confirmed his death in a phone interview with KPRC 2. 'I got the horrible news early in the morning after one of his best friends reached out and said that he took his last breath while surrounded by friends and family,' Stellato told the news outlet. He went on to describe Braman as 'unselfish' and 'generous,' even when he didn't need to be. 'Bryan, people saw this enormous human being, but his heart was big as his body. His spirit was so motivating. He was so real and genuine with everybody. That made him special,' he added, per KPRC 2. In an interview with People, updated July 18, Stellato spoke of how much Braman loved being a father. 'He loved his two girls so, so much. They were everything, his legacy,' he said of the football star's daughters, who 'spent the last two weeks with him when he was dying.' Braman was a proud girl dad to Blakely, 11, and Marlowe, 8, according to The Guardian. Braman was signed by the Houston Texans as an undrafted free agent in 2011 and quickly became a fan favorite for his play on special teams, which had him pegged as a Pro Bowl alternate in 2012, per CNN. He signed with the Eagles in 2014 and again in 2017, spending a total of four years with the team, according to Pro Football Reference. In 2018, after beating the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LII, Braman enjoyed a special moment with his agent as they celebrated the win on the field. 'Him and I cried in each other's arms when he won Super Bowl LII on the field. And I was holding his daughter in a photo, which was really cool,' Stellato told People. He further described Braman as a 'gentle giant,' despite his 6'6'', 250-pound frame. 'He'd be the first one to hold the door for someone, to give a few dollars to someone that was homeless, because he was homeless in his earlier days,' says Stellato. Braman reportedly sold his vehicle to help pay for treatment According to The Associated Press, Braman was diagnosed with cancer earlier this year. A GoFundMe page, created in February in honor of Braman, confirmed that the Spokane, Washington, native 'is currently fighting a life-threatening cancer that requires an extensive 12-week treatment program.' 'He is required to have a 24-hour caregiver,' the GoFundMe description read. 'He has no home currently as he has had to pay our of pocket for much of his treatment, and even sold his last vehicle to raise the money for the motel fir this week,' the description continued. In an update on June 20, the organizer of the GoFundMe confirmed that Braman was home with his family after 'undergoing a Car-t cell reprogramming treatment program,' per the page. The football star underwent multiple surgeries, but the cancer continued to fight back. 'They have tried all of the various treatment options, and unfortunately, none of them are working against this cancer,' the update continued. 'But Bryan has not given up.' Several teammates and NFL players have donated to the cause, including J.J. Watt, Rasul Douglas, Chris Long, Quandre Diggs, Duane Brown, Brent Celek, Chris Ballard and Brian Cushing. Braman finished his NFL career with 56 tackles, 1.5 sacks and two fumble recoveries in 97 games played over seven seasons. His last game — the Super Bowl win — turned out to be the biggest of his career.
Yahoo
19 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Stefon Diggs tells Drake Maye: Don't be afraid to give me the mustard
Stefon Diggs knows that Drake Maye has a big arm. He wants his new quarterback to let it rip. That was the message from Maye's new No. 1 receiver with the New England Patriots during a summer throwing session earlier this week. After catching a pass from Maye, Diggs said that he was expecting the ball to come in hot. So he told his quarterback: Don't hold back. 'Hey, don't be scared to put that (expletive) mustard on there. I know you got it in there,' Diggs said. After the mention of mustard, one of Diggs' teammates chimed in by echoing the popular line, 'Mustaaard!' from the Kendrick Lamar song of the same name. As always, the line was infectious. 'Mustaaard!' Diggs yelled in reply. As shown in a video on Kendrick Bourne's YouTube channel, Patriots receivers traveled to Maye's home state of North Carolina for a series of players-only passing sessions. The group started out at William Amos Hough High School in Cornelius, North Carolina before moving to Davidson College for their final session. In addition to Maye, Diggs and Bourne, other players present at the throwing sessions included DeMario Douglas, Kyle Williams, Ja'Lynn Polk, Hunter Henry, Rhamondre Stevenson and backup quarterback Josh Dobbs. More Patriots Content Kendrick Bourne hypes up promising Patriots rookie during players-only practice Patriots wideout thanks Drake Maye for 'free vacation,' hosting players-only summer session Could Tom Brady make a comeback? Former Super Bowl opponent thinks he could still play if he wanted Robert Kraft explains delay in unveiling Tom Brady statue Read the original article on MassLive.
Yahoo
19 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Kendrick Bourne hypes up promising Patriots rookie during players-only practice
It's still only July, but Patriots WR Kendrick Bourne likes what he's seeing so far from one rookie teammate this offseason. First-year receiver Kyle Williams made a difficult catch in the back of the end zone during a players-only workout recently while Bourne watched from under the goal post. Williams stretched both arms above his head, pulled the ball into his chest and tapped both feet inbound to complete the catch. 'Good catch boy!,' Bourne said to the rookie. 'You didn't even look at it.' 'You were like this,' Bourne said while throwing both arms up into the air. Bourne went on to compliment Williams on his ability to focus on where the ball was in the air while also focusing on getting his feet inbounds. Williams responded by highlighting the important of periphery vision. 'That's a good point,' Bourne said. 'That's real talk. Because sometimes you can be thinking about both (the feet and the ball). You'll either drop it or your feet won't be in.' The moment was captured in a video posted to Bourne's YouTube page on Friday. The workout took place at Davidson College in North Carolina. Second-year QB Drake Maybe was in attendance along with new receiver Stefon Diggs, Pop Douglas and more. Williams was the Mountain West Freshman of the Year at UNLV in 2020 before transferring to Washington State in 2023. Following this year's draft, analysts complimented Williams's ability to go deep, bring down the ball and beat defenses in the middle of the field. The Patriots selected Williams in the third round with the 69th overall pick and was the only receiver the team selected during the draft. More Patriots Content Patriots wideout thanks Drake Maye for 'free vacation,' hosting players-only summer session Stefon Diggs tells Drake Maye: Don't be afraid to give me the mustard Could Tom Brady make a comeback? Former Super Bowl opponent thinks he could still play if he wanted Robert Kraft explains delay in unveiling Tom Brady statue Read the original article on MassLive.
