Whether you’re happy or not that the Eagles are playing in Brazil instead of South Philly, there’s one thing for certain – this is quite the marquee matchup to be part of the start of the regular season for the Eagles and the NFL when Philadelphia squares off against the Green Bay Packers Friday night.
Eagles HC Nick Sirianni spoke with the media Tuesday morning ahead of their game and one big focus in terms of game plan will be how this younger secondary with new coaches be able to combat and slow down a Packers’ offense that seemed to turn a corner in the second half of last season led by quarterback Jordan Love, who is now tied as the highest-paid player in the NFL making $55 million a year along with Bengals’ quarterback Joe Burrow and Jacksonville’s signal caller Trevor Lawrence.
On Eagles’ new secondary coaches and reasoning behind their hiring:
Sirianni: “I’ve worked with Joe Kasper before and had so much respect for him and what he brought to the table in 2021-2022. When we got Vic (Fangio) here and had a chance to get Joe back, that was a no brainer. Christian Parker is highly respected around the league. I don’t know how old he is exactly, but to understand he has this type of respect attached to his name because the product he’s put on the field and obviously Vic has worked with him so really excited, and I know our defensive backs are really excited as well…
…Roy Anderson, he was in Seattle with Clint Hurtt last year and everyone talked so highly on him. Saw Jim Harbaugh and spoke with him before the game when we played the Ravens and he just raved about him. Guys get foot in the door potentially because they worked with someone and had good reports from then you do the research on the person and a lot of good reports coming back on the guy and you don’t know it completely until they get into the building, but they have done a phenomenal job.”
Teething problems
The Eagles’ secondary coaching staff will certainly be under a microscope to see how the younger defensive backs progress and develop throughout the season.
Sirianni mentioned that Week 1 can be a challenge with the extra time for preparation and going against a first-year defensive coordinator.
“You have to dig as much as you possibly can. A lot of unknowns throughout the year even with defensive coordinators that have been there throughout the years. Everyone is doing different things throughout the year, studying different things, adding new wrinkles. Have to adjust to anything we might get and have to look at when he (Jef Hafley) was a head coach at Boston College. Have a lot of respect for him and what’s he’s done to earn the opportunity to be the defensive coordinator for the Green Bay Packers is a huge honor too. Have to be ready for anything...
…Without giving up secrets, we’ve looked at a bunch of stuff as well. Coach LaFleur have so much respect for him and what he’s done in this league, he’s going to have a say on it. Have to be ready.”
The Eagles kickoff the season in Sao Paulo at 8:15 p.m. Friday night.
Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
