PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Nick Sirianni's first game as head coach of the Eagles went pretty well. They blew out the Atlanta Falcons 32-6 on Sunday. And the play that gave the Eagles control of the game was almost the exact opposite of what happened in last season's opening loss at Washington.
The key moment to the win was the two-minute drill Jalen Hurts and company put on late in the first half, said SportsRadio 94WIP's Ray Didinger. The Eagles got the ball with 1:44 to go and drove it right down the field, scoring a touchdown nine seconds before halftime.
"At that point, [the Eagles'] confidence was just soaring," Didinger said. "And when they went into the locker room, I don't think there was any doubt they were in complete control of the game. And in the second half, they dominated it."
That sequence was almost the exact opposite of how things played out for former quarterback Carson Wentz in the 2020 season opening loss at Washington, when the Eagles coughed up a 17-0 lead.
With 1:37 left before halftime, Wentz threw an interception, which led to the Washington Football Team's first touchdown of the game, en route to 27 unanswered points. That 27-17 loss set the Eagles' terrible 4-11-1 season into motion.
And what made the reversal even more fascinating is that the Washington player who intercepted Wentz, Fabian Moreau, was the same Falcons player covering Eagles rookie wide receiver DeVonta Smith on Sunday on the team's first touchdown of the game.
That's the circle of life," Didinger said, "and the circle of pro football."
The Voice of the Eagles, Merrill Reese, on Monday shared his biggest takeaway from the win.
"That preseason means nothing. All summer I was worried that this team didn't have enough game activity, there was no real hitting in the preseason," Reese said.
"Meanwhile, the Eagles offense was hot from the very, very first play. So, I think maybe it's time to revise our traditional thinking and realize that Nick Sirianni was right in saying that he felt that the dual practices and the drills every day were what he needed to get this team ready."
NBC Sports Philadelphia reported that Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie gave Sirianni the game ball after the win.
"It was really special to get the first one. It was a great team win. Guys were saying congratulations to me. I was saying congratulations to them," Sirianni told John Clark on NBC 10's "Eagles Gameday Final."
Sirianni said his message to the team was having a "dog mentality."
"After each play, the dog gets put back in a cage. And for each play, the cage gets opened, and the dog forgets about what happened last play, and he goes and he chases the rabbit again," Sirianni explained on the WIP Morning Show. "I like the visual better of dog mentality — of the dogs snarling and drooling and growling and barking for every quarter ... no matter what happened the play before."
Related
Brandon Graham said they just want to fight for Sirianni.
"He's been the same guy since he got here. He even — you know — joked about the other day, about his first time doing the media and how everybody ripped him. How mad he was. But at the same time, he was like: You know, you have to shake it off and come back and do it again."
Related
