Eagles coach Nick Sirianni’s links to Kansas City rival Andy Reid’s links to Philly
Kansas City holds a special place in Sirianni's heart, as he once was a Chiefs assistant coach and his wife is from the area.
Nick Sirianni was in no apparent rush to get home on Sunday evening after his Eagles eliminated the San Francisco 49ers from the playoffs with their dominant 31-7 victory in the NFC championship game.
Once the second-year coach concluded his postgame responsibilities, Sirianni retreated to the field, where he gathered with a large group of family members, including his wife Brett. The group stood amid the confetti-filled grass and posed for photos – with the words “CONFERENCE CHAMPIONS” displayed on the video boards, serving as an ideal backdrop for Sirianni and his loved ones.
Eventually, Sirianni and Co. departed Lincoln Financial Field for his home in South Jersey, where the celebrations continued. Upon their arrival, Sirianni made sure to put the AFC championship game on his living room TV, and he patiently waited to discover the Eagles’ Super Bowl opponent. While he watched the second half of the AFC title game, Sirianni’s in-laws expressed support for the eventual winning team, the Kansas City Chiefs. Brett is from Springfield, Mo., less than three hours from Kansas City.
Could the upcoming Super Bowl LVII matchup involving the Eagles and Chiefs create division in the Sirianni household?
“[Brett’s family] is rooting for us now,” Sirianni said jokingly on Monday afternoon.
Laughs aside, Sirianni will always carry roots attached to Kansas City — similarly to former Eagles and current Chiefs coach Andy Reid with his ties to Philadelphia. Kansas City is where Sirianni started his NFL coaching career as an offensive quality control coach in 2009 and remained until the Reid regime started in 2013. It’s also where he met Brett.
“Obviously, meeting my wife there, that will always be a special place to us because of that,” Sirianni said. “Then professionally, my first stint in the NFL. It was really important both ways. Kansas City is a great town. We really enjoyed our time there. My wife had a lot of friends there. I made some good friends there, as well, none of whom I would assume are rooting for us or our family [next] weekend, but that’s OK.
“When you have something as significant as meeting your wife there in that city, that place, that time frame, that city is always going to carry a special place in my heart because of that.”
The Eagles won’t depart until this weekend for Glendale, Ariz., site of the following Sunday’s Super Bowl matchup. Sirianni is hoping to use the rest of the week to finalize the coaching staff’s game plan. The Eagles will hold workout sessions on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday before they board the team’s charter plane.
Sirianni is hoping to maximize the next four days within a controlled environment before the chaos surrounding Super Bowl LVII begins next week. The Chiefs, led by quarterback Patrick Mahomes, like the Eagles’ Jalen Hurts an MVP finalist, have arrived to the Super Bowl tied with the Eagles for most victories, 16 each.
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Asked for his overall impression of the Chiefs, Sirianni said: “They’ve been really good for a long time, great organization. Coach Reid is a great coach, and Patrick Mahomes is one of the best players in the world, tight end Travis Kelce, defensive tackle Chris Jones — they have good players everywhere. We’re just in our early stages of studying them. [Monday] was more of a review of the game day and doing some of the logistics things, but then [Tuesday], we’re in our early stages of studying the Chiefs, and that’s where we are right now.
“Really good team, obviously, as you would expect — they’re in the Super Bowl.”
As he’s done all season, Sirianni is maintaining his “daily approach” philosophy. The Eagles have etched similar phrases across the team’s headquarters at NovaCare Complex. Located above the entrance of the locker room is the message: “1% BETTER EVERYDAY.”
That will continue to be the team’s messaging ahead of the biggest game of the season.
“We’re going to preach it and talk about it because we understand that it is real,” Sirianni said. “Our job is to get a little bit better each day, it is to climb. We don’t need to think about getting way down the road here, but ‘How do we get a little bit better today?’ ... It’s just [eliminating] distractions, and it’s hard. It will be hard. It will be a challenge. ...
“The greatest motivator is love, and I know our guys love each other, and sacrificing things is one of the greatest indicators of love. Knowing your distractions is the first thing, [then] trying to eliminate them as much as you possibly can this week with what’s going on so we can go 1-0 each day. That will essentially be the message, and it will be on repeat.”