Eagles coach Nick Sirianni got into a fiery exchange with one of his assistants on Sunday as Philly played the Steelers.
With the Eagles leading Pittsburgh 27-13 in the fourth quarter – and set to receive a punt – defensive tackle Jalen Carter nearly cost his team possession of the ball when he whacked Connor Heyward in the helmet and got flagged for a penalty.
And Sirianni was incensed by Carter’s decision-making as he tried to confront the 23-year-old.
However, defensive line coach Clint Huff stood in Sirianni’s way and the two traded words with one another as they were face-to-face.
The team’s chief security officer ‘Big Dom’ DiSandro, who was barred from the sidelines last season after an altercation with the 49ers’ Dre Greenlaw, then stepped in to assuage the situation between Sirianni and Huff.
The situation did not escalate past a verbal confrontation, while Carter’s infraction was deemed to have occurred after the Steelers had punted – meaning the Eagles still got the ball.
Nick Sirianni and defensive line coach Clint Huff got into it after a Jalen Carter penalty
Carter was flagged for unnecessary roughness but could have costed Philly the ball
Sirianni declined to discuss what was said on the sideline when asked after the game
Carter was flagged for a 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty, however.
After the game, Sirianni remained tight-lipped about what was said on the sideline.
‘I’ll never get into the conversations I have with players,’ he said in the postgame press conference.
‘He made a play that is not part of our standard. My job is to correct that. Regardless of what it is, we’re gonna correct the things we need to do better and praise the things we need to do well.’
Sirianni also said that he ‘loves’ Carter, who has become a starter for the 12-2 Eagles in his second season.
The No. 9 overall pick of the 2023 NFL Draft has 4.5 sacks and 12 tackles for a loss this season.
It’s not the first time this season that Sirianni has clashed with one of his own, as he screamed at Eagles fans following the team’s win over the Browns in October.
Amid the team’s 2-2 start, some fans in the stands had been chanting ‘Fire Nick!’, and Sirianni has had an at-times fraught relationship with the Philly faithful since a late-season collapse last year.
However, Philly is currently riding a 10-game win streak after Sunday’s 27-13 win over the Steelers, which brought Sirianni’s record as the Eagles’ coach to a tremendous 46-19.
