Nick Sirianni called the Philadelphia Eagles' offseason free-agency signing of linebacker Zack Baun, a hidden gem, a "home run for the organization."
"I just think it's good team work of the front office and the coaching staff," Sirianni told Joe DeCamara and Jon Ritchie on Tuesday's 94WIP Morning Show when asked about who is responsible for identifying and executing on the Baun signing.
"And I've really valued that from day one with Howie. I am so fortunate that I have a GM of his caliber and the things that he's done for this football team, for this city and helped me become the coach that I am...And then again, you communicate, myself, Vic [Fangio] talking about it.
"I think it's a home run for the organization," Sirianni added. "Howie and the coaching staff and Zack Baun himself. And so, you get really excited about those...That's a great feeling when it's just a team win and a player like Zack Baun succeeding. But make no mistake about it, all of the credit and most of the credit goes to Zack Baun and the player that he is, the toughness that he has. I am so glad that he is on this football team."
Baun, 27, signed a one-year deal worth just $1.6 million—just barely above the fifth-year NFL league minimum salary of $1.5 million—with the Eagles in March of 2024 after playing his first four seasons with the New Orleans Saints.
There has been speculation that the Eagles and Baun could work on a long-term contract during the 2024 regular season.
Baun, a 2020 third-round pick, was mostly a special teams player for the Saints, never playing more than 27-percent of the defensive snaps in any of his four seasons there.
In his first season with Philadelphia, under Sirianni and new defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, Baun has excelled. In 10 starts, Baun has recorded 102 total tackles, an average of 10.2 per game which is currently the most in the NFL. Baun has also recorded an interception, three passes defended, three forced fumbles, two sacks, and a fumble recovery while playing 95-percent of the team's defensive snaps and—out of no where—establishing himself as one of the best NFL linebackers this season.