Nick Sirianni doesn’t elaborate much on his decision to go for it on fourth-and-1 against the Saints

One week after he elaborated on his fourth-down decision-making in the Eagles’ 22-21 loss to the Atlanta Falcons, Nick Sirianni wasn’t as keen to share his thought process behind his decision to go for it on fourth-and-1 at the New Orleans Saints’ 15-yard line with 14 seconds remaining in the first half.

In the immediate aftermath of Sunday afternoon’s win, the coach took responsibility for the play call, a Tush Push fake in which Saquon Barkley took a handoff and ran to the left side of the formation. Saints defenders Chase Young and Pete Werner stuffed the running back for no gain, leaving the Eagles down, 3-0, at the half. Sirianni said Monday that he was making the decision in that scenario that he thought was best for the team.

“Sometimes that works out,” Sirianni said. “Sometimes it doesn’t. Sometimes I come back at the end of it and rethink it every single time. But in the middle of it, and as it’s happening, I’m making the best educated decision I can to help the football team win.”

» READ MORE: Nick Sirianni and the Eagles never make it easy on themselves, do they?

The fourth-year head coach answered affirmatively when asked if he thought the team had enough time on the clock for two more shots at the end zone (before settling for a field goal if neither play resulted in a touchdown) had the Eagles converted the fourth-down attempt. The offense would have had 10 seconds remaining in the half after taking its final timeout to stop the clock. The Eagles ultimately went 1-for-3 on their fourth-down attempts against the Saints, their worst single-game conversion rate on fourth down of the season.

Sirianni said that his decision to call a play is going to happen “here and there,” even though offensive coordinator Kellen Moore is primarily responsible for calling plays. He emphasized the collaborative approach of all of the coaching staffs he has been on in Philadelphia and beyond, including the group he’s working with this year.

“Kellen’s obviously the one calling plays, but everything is collaborative as far as the way we go through our process and in-game,” Sirianni said. “Just because I did it in that one, that doesn’t mean there’s not a play that [passing game coordinator] Kevin Patullo’s not saying in the ear of Kellen, ‘Hey, what do you think about this there?’ And Kellen going, ‘Yeah, I like that idea.’ Or [offensive line coach] Jeff Stoutland or [tight ends coach] Jason Michael on a run play, particularly, or [run game specialist] T.J. [Paganetti] on a run play, saying, ‘Hey, they’re doing this in this scenario. What about this?’

“That happens throughout the game over and over and over again.”

After the game, Sirianni also took responsibility for Jalen Hurts’ red-zone interception to start the second quarter on a pass intended for DeVonta Smith.

Sirianni acknowledged that the route that Smith ran on the interception out of the slot was similar to his route on his 7-yard touchdown reception against the Falcons, with some subtle differences. On the touchdown, Smith slipped behind a trio of defenders to haul in the pass in the back of the end zone, but on the interception, Saints safety Tyrann Mathieu jumped in front of the 25-year-old receiver to make the pick.

In hindsight, Sirianni said that he didn’t do a good enough job of showing video of the route against a variety of coverages in meetings. The coach will typically use clips of both his team and others as a way to show the group what a play is supposed to look like. Depending on the leverage of the safety, the route should be run differently, which is why Sirianni was “hypercritical” of himself in how he prepared Smith for that play.

“I think that’s what everyone’s got to go through, is those processes of what could I do better to help the team, right?” Sirianni said. “Smitty’s out there busting his [butt] to make every play he can. What am I doing as a coach to bust my [butt] to put him in every spot that I can possibly put him in?”

The Eagles’ receiving corps, which has already been without A.J. Brown (hamstring) for the last two weeks, lost Smith (concussion) and Britain Covey (shoulder) during Sunday’s game. Covey was seen after the game sporting a sling around his left arm.

With the Eagles hitting the road to face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday, Sirianni said the team will see who will be available to play as the week continues. Regardless, the coach reiterated his confidence in the depth receivers, including Johnny Wilson, Jahan Dotson, and Parris Campbell.

The trio was involved in the passing game in the absence of Brown, and later Smith and Covey. Wilson, the Eagles’ sixth-round pick out of Florida State, had a 9-yard reception that converted a third-and-8 in the second quarter. Dotson made two short catches and notably ran a well-executed mesh concept to free up Dallas Goedert for his 61-yard catch-and-run that led to Barkley’s game-winning touchdown.

» READ MORE: Dallas Goedert sparks Eagles’ winning drive with a check from Jalen Hurts, an assist from Jahan Dotson

Campbell, a practice squad call-up for the second straight week, had his first two receptions in an Eagles uniform. Still, Sirianni acknowledged that it won’t just be on the depth receivers to step up if Brown, Smith, and Covey have to miss time.

“It can look a lot of different ways, right?” Sirianni said. “So I have a lot of faith in that tight end room and I have a lot of faith in the running back room as you look at the skill positions.

“But we’ve got options, that’s for sure, just because we feel good about the work that these guys have put in and the players and the teammates that they are.”