Philadelphia head coach Nick Sirianni wasn’t interested on Sunday in talking about taunting Eagles fans late in Sunday’s win over the Cleveland Browns.
After a night to sleep on it, he had a change of heart.
When asked on Monday about Sunday’s late-game exchange with fans, Sirianni apologized.
“I was trying to bring energy and enthusiasm yesterday,” Sirianni said at his Monday news conference. “I’m sorry and disappointed at how my energy was directed at the end of the game. My energy should be all in on coaching, motivating and celebrating with our guys. I’ve got to have better wisdom and discernment of when to use that energy. And that wasn’t the time.”
“We have the best fans in the world. There’s no place like this. They show up and show out no matter where they are.”
Sirianni faced questions about his behavior because of an exchange with fans in the final minute of Sunday’s game. Eagles fans had reportedly broken out in boos and a “Fire Nick” chant earlier in the game.
When a 20-16 victory against the Browns was secured, Sirianni responded with some words of his own directed at fans in the Lincoln Financial Field stands.
It’s not clear what he said. Sirianni didn’t go into detail about the exchange on Monday. But he did take accountability after declining to do so on Sunday.
Sirianni instead on Sunday surrounded himself with his three young children and deflected when repeatedly asked in his postgame news conference about the exchange.
“Just excited. Just excited to get the win,” Sirianni responded when asked about chirping at fans.
When asked multiple followup questions about the exchange, Sirianni said this:
“Just excited to get the win,” Sirianni continued. “It’s hard to win in this league. So we’re excited to get the win. Our fans created a couple of false starts that really helped us win this football game.
“Just excited to get the win and appreciate the Linc’s support.”
Sirianni started the season on shaky ground after a late-season collapse in 2023. The Eagles started 10-1, but lost five of their last six regular-season games before losing 32-9 to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the wild-card round.
The Eagles started 2-2 this season and found themselves in a 10-10 halftime tie on Sunday against a 1-4 Browns team that’s one of the worst in the league. Even with the eventual four-point win, this is not the start Eagles fans envisioned from a team built to compete for a Super Bowl.
Sunday’s exchange didn’t endear Sirianni any further with fans.