Nick Sirianni defends offensive coordinator Brian Johnson: ‘He’s done a really good job’

Nick Sirianni is not among Brian Johnson’s naysayers.

The Eagles head coach said Wednesday that Johnson’s performance in his first year as the team’s play-caller may be getting underappreciated, pointing to the Eagles offensive production and team success with him working the headset.

“He’s done a really good job and probably hasn’t been talked enough about as good of a job he’s done,” Sirianni said. “I think there was an expectation coming in, ‘Oh, we lost our coordinator, we’re going to take a step back,’ and that’s really not been the case. Same record we had last year. To me, Brian deserves a lot of credit for that and should be talked about more.”

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Sirianni is right, the Eagles are 9-1 for the second straight year with Johnson taking over for Shane Steichen, who left in the offseason for the Indianapolis Colts’ head-coaching job. The offensive production through 10 games is not far behind where it finished last year. The Eagles are fifth in points per game compared to third in 2022, ninth in yards per game compared to third last year, and ninth in defense-adjusted value over average (DVOA) compared to second last year.

The biggest difference comes in turnovers. The offense committed just 19 turnovers last season, tied for fifth fewest. This year, they’ve already given the ball up 14 times, which is tied for 16th fewest.

Turnover variance is to be expected to a certain degree, though, and most of Johnson’s critics have been loudest about certain in-game decisions rather than overall production. The Eagles had a heavy reliance on screens against an aggressive Kansas City Chiefs defensive front on Monday night, with uneven results that drew scrutiny. Exactly half of Jalen Hurts’ 22 pass attempts were targeted either behind the line of scrimmage or within 5 yards of it.

Still, the Eagles averaged 4.9 yards per play when Hurts threw behind the line of scrimmage Monday, which isn’t bad considering the offensive staff typically views screen passes as extensions of the run game.

Sirianni said Johnson’s in-game instincts have been a reason for the team’s offensive success, especially when it comes to situational decision-making.

“He has a good feel and good flow for what’s going on in the game and being able to adjust in the game,” Sirianni said. “He’s really smart situationally. When I talk about situational football, these things pop up everywhere. Third down, red zone, two minute, backed up, third down and backed up, four minute, four minute backed up, four minute third down; they’re endless.”

The Eagles opened the 21-day practice window for wide receiver Quez Watkins, signaling the wide receiver is nearing a return from injured reserve.

Watkins was placed on injured reserve with a hamstring injury back in October. He dealt with a hamstring injury in September as well, which cost him two games before the subsequent injury sidelined him long-term.

The Eagles signed veteran Julio Jones in part to compensate for Watkins’ absence as an outside receiving option behind A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith. Jones has four catches for 16 yards and a touchdown in his four games with the team, but he played a season-high 57% of the Eagles’ snaps against the Chiefs with tight end Dallas Goedert out with a forearm injury. Jones had two catches for 5 yards against Kansas City.

Watkins has four catches for 21 yards this season. He started the year as the team’s clear No. 3 receiver behind Brown and Smith but will likely split time with Jones and slot receiver Olamide Zaccheaus upon his return. He was listed as a limited participant in Wednesday’s practice that was a walk-through, making his status an estimation.

The Eagles host the Buffalo Bills on Sunday. Join Eagles beat reporters Olivia Reiner and EJ Smith as they dissect the hottest story lines surrounding the team on Gameday Central, live from Lincoln Financial Field.